Israeli Court Recognizes Woman as Mother to Partner's Child Born Abroad
Translated & summarized from Ynet by baba
An Israeli woman living in the U.S. has been legally recognized as the mother of her female partner's daughter by a Tel Aviv Family Court. The court rejected the state's opposition, which was based on the couple's non-residency in Israel. Judge Anat Heller-Krish ruled that recognizing the parentage serves the child's best interest by preventing a legal status split. The decision grants a retroactive legal parentage order for the daughter, and the state must pay 40,000 shekels in legal costs.
The story in 5 lines · by baba
- An Israeli woman living in the U.S. was recognized as a legal mother to her partner's daughter by a Tel Aviv Family Court.
- The court rejected the state's opposition, which argued the couple's non-residency in Israel.
- Judge Anat Heller-Krish ruled that recognizing parentage serves the child's best interest by preventing a legal status split.
- The decision grants a retroactive legal parentage order for the daughter.
- The state must pay the couple 40,000 shekels in legal costs.
A Tel Aviv Family Court has recognized an American resident Israeli woman as the legal mother of the daughter born to her female partner, ruling that the child's best interest is to prevent a gap between her life's reality and her legal status. Judge Anat Heller-Krish rejected the state's opposition, which primarily argued that the couple are not residents of Israel.
The couple, married in New York in 2020, decided to expand their family through sperm donation. Both women became pregnant. The foreign partner gave birth to a daughter, and about a month later, the Israeli woman gave birth to a son. Both children were registered as having two mothers in the United States.
However, in Israel, the Ministry of Interior rejected their request to register their parentage for the minors, leading them to petition the court. While the son was recognized as an Israeli citizen, the court ordered a legal parentage decree for the daughter, allowing the application despite their non-residency in Israel.
The couple argued that the child was born from a joint decision and is raised as the daughter of both, stating that non-recognition in Israel would create a "status split" affecting critical aspects like alimony and decision-making in case of separation.
The state opposed, citing the family's decade-long residence abroad without intent to settle in Israel, and claiming no practical benefit from a legal parentage order since the child is already recognized in the U.S.
Judge Heller-Krish noted that the state had not appealed a previous ruling allowing the couple to apply for the parentage order despite non-residency, making that decision final. She stated that there is no explicit legal requirement for residency to establish parentage in such cases, and the rationale for residency requirements in adoption and surrogacy laws does not apply to existing families raising their children together. The judge emphasized that denying the request could create an unbearable reality for the child, whose best interest lies in preventing a status split between countries, especially given the family's close emotional and practical ties to Israel.
The court granted the request for the legal parentage decree, retroactive to the daughter's birth. The state was ordered to pay the couple 40,000 shekels in legal expenses.