Three\u27s Company - How American Law Can Recognize a Third Social Parent in Same-Sex Headed Families

In light of recent American and Canadian case law granting legal parenting rights to three parents in same-sex headed families, this Article explores how the Uniform Parentage Act can be modified to accommodate multiple parenthood within this population subset. The author draws from Professor Nancy Dowd\u27s scholarship on unbundling social and economic parenting rights to support social fatherhood. The author also analyzes existing methods by which same-sex couples may obtain parenting rights under American law and recent California precedents applying the Uniform Parentage Act to recognize two legal mothers. The Article proposes that Nancy Dowd\u27s revisions to the Act, coupled with the author\u27s proposals for further modifications, could allow for legal recognition of multiple parenthood and the separation of social parenting rights and economic support duties in a variety of family structures