Nebraska Supreme Court rules in favor of gay couples in foster care case

Source: Reuters




Sat Apr 8, 2017 | 1:31am EDT

A former state policy that banned gay couples from becoming foster parents was the same as a "whites only" employment sign, the Nebraska Supreme Court wrote in a ruling released on Friday that affirmed a lower court's decision.

The ruling comes four years after three same-sex couples filed a lawsuit against Nebraska, arguing that a 1995 state policy prohibiting gay couples from being foster care parents and adopting wards of the state is unconstitutional.

A state district court in 2015 ruled for the couples and ordered the state policy to be rescinded.

The state appealed to the Nebraska Supreme Court on the grounds that the couples did not have standing because they did not apply for and were not rejected for a foster care license or having a state ward placed in their homes.

Read more: http://www.reuters.com/article/us-nebraska-lgbt-idUSKBN17A057