The Arizona State Court of Appeal ruled Thursday the ex-wife of a woman who gave birth to a child cannot presume to be the parent. The judges ruled the law on paternity clearly and unambiguously applies solely to men.
This case involves Heather Turner and Liza Oakley, who were married and later had a baby. Turner listed Oakley as the "father” on the birth certificate, but Oakley never formally adopted the child.
When the marriage fell apart, Turner successfully argued that Oakley could not assert any rights regarding temporary legal decision-making during the divorce or parenting time. The panel based the decision on the paternity statute referring to a male parent.
This latest ruling comes six months after a different division of the appeals court reached the exact opposite conclusion.
The ruling now sets the stage for the Arizona Supreme Court to decide which reading of the law is correct.