Former lesbian partners settle custody dispute

by GB

SANTA CRUZ - The one-time lesbian parents of twin boys have settled a paternity dispute that allows the women to maintain joint custody, The National Center for Lesbian Rights announced Friday.The organization, which represents the non-biological mother Kim Smith, said the two women reached a settlement under which both are “recognized as legal parents.” Specific details were not immediately released about the case, which had been headed toward a trial in Superior Court.

Smith, who works at UC Santa Cruz, and the biological mother, Maggie Quale, a public relations specialist, agreed to parent the children before breaking up months after the birth last year. Quale, who is bisexual, then began a relationship with the children’s father, a sperm donor whom she had met through a mutual friend.

“Kim and Maggie are working hard to rebuild trust and are returning their focus to the care of their children,” said Deborah Wald, a family law attorney from San Francisco who worked with the National Center for Lesbian Rights to defend Smith’s interests.

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