YNET NEWS: Top legal official rules 'partner' referred to in adoptions laws also applies to members of same sex unions; bottom line: Gays and lesbians may adopt their partner's child
Attorney General Menachem Mazuz ruled on Sunday that Israeli law grants members of same sex unions the right to adopt their partner's children and thus be considered the legal guardians of their joint children vis-à-vis official State institutions.
Discussion on the matter was spurred by the Ministry of Social Affairs in order to discern the official State position in wake of recent legal rulings on the matter.
The discussion included officials from Child Services, members of the Attorney General's Office, officials from the Ministries of Social Affairs and Justice as well as from the State Prosecutor's office.
At the end of the exchange, it was decided that the term "partner" in Israeli adoption laws does include partners in a same sex union. At the end of the discussion, the attorney general ruled that members of same sex couples may adopt their partner's biological or adopted children. Attorney General rules same sex couples eligible to adopt >>> By Aviram Zino
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