COLAGE released the following statement regarding the recent Pennsylvania Supreme Court ruling in Glover v. Junior:
COLAGE is celebrating the Pennsylvania Supreme Court’s ruling in Glover v. Junior that affirms intent-based parentage and paves the way for all queerspawn and LGBTQ+ parents to hold the same recognition as their heteronormative peers in the commonwealth.
On March 20, 2025, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court upheld the lower courts’ findings that a non-gestational mother is a legal parent to the child she helped conceive and planned to raise with her former spouse and the gestational mother. This legal determination was based on the couple’s intent to co-parent the child before the dissolution of their relationship. Last year, COLAGE joined several organizations in submitting an amicus brief in support of the non-gestational parent.
Although this case doesn’t establish any new rights, it confirms existing ones and further legitimizes LGBTQ+ families who often have to navigate the legal system and spend large amounts of money in proceedings just to have their parentage recognized. The decision adds Pennsylvania to the growing number of states that recognize intent-based parentage, which reflects the reality of how many of our families come to be.
“It shouldn’t take litigation for queer families to be seen, but when it does, we’re glad to see courts affirming our legal legitimacy through an intent-based framework,” said Jordan Wilson, Executive Director of COLAGE. He continued, “This ruling provides legal grounding, security, and validation for COLAGErs in Pennsylvania. When courts recognize that intentional parenthood holds legal weight, we get closer to a world where all queerspawn and our families are treated equally and fairly.”
Read our report on the importance of updating state parentage laws. Learn more about COLAGE and our work, and help support us as we continue to provide community and empowerment for people with LGBTQ+ parents/caregivers.
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