California

California's ban on marriage equality will continue at least until December reports the Erickson Law ProudParenting blog, posted by attorney Theresa Erickson: "The decision of a three judge panel of the Ninth Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals means the Golden State's gay marriage ban will remain in effect until at least early December when oral arguments are scheduled. In December, the Ninth Circuit will have to determine if Prop 8 supporters will be harmed if Walker's ruling takes full effect.

The AP reports that Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger said he wants the state to begin handing out marriage licenses immediately. State Attorney General Jerry Brown agrees. Both politicians agree with a federal judge's ruling that struck down the state's gay marriage ban. The judge will now decide whether to allow same-sex marriages to proceed.

A second parent adoption is a legal procedure that allows a same-sex parent to adopt a partner’s biological or adoptive child without terminating the legal rights of the first parent. States must honor second-parent adoptions from other states.

Second-parent adoption is authorized in California by statute - and where appellate courts have ruled that the state adoption law permits second-parent adoption.

A statute is a law passed by a legislature. An appellate court is about appeals. It has the power to review the judgment of another lower court or tribunal.

National Center for Lesbian Rights [NCLR] announced the resolution of the custody dispute between Kim Smith and Maggie Quale in Santa Cruz, California.

According to NCLR - while in a committed relationship for over two years - Smith and Quale had twins together using donated sperm. The couple paid a sperm donor $540 for his donation from their joint bank account. They had twins, and raised them together for approximately six months before breaking up.

The AP reports:

A Santa Cruz court is slated to hear a custody dispute between two women who are former partners - in which the biological mother has become romantically involved with the sperm donor father of her 10-month-old twins.

Kim T. Smith of Santa Cruz has sued for joint custody of the twins, saying she and former partner Maggie Quale agreed to raise the boys together.

Right-wing political mastermind - Frank Schubert - has acknowledged his lesbian sister in press interviews. Now Anne Marie Schubert, currently a deputy district attorney for Sacramento, announced she's running to be a Sacramento County Superior Court judge.

The Oceanside, CA lesbian whose doctors denied her infertility treatment based on her sexual orientation has reached a settlement with her former physicians in her historic lawsuit against them.