Alabama Judge Allows Lesbian Mother Visitation Rights

Overnight restrictions will not be in place

In what may be a first, an Alabama judge has ruled that a lesbian mother can have unrestricted visitation rights to her children. According to the Southern Poverty Law Center, who represented the woman in court, a Mobile County judge granted the rights without so-called overnight restrictions — sometimes called "paramour" restrictions — that normally prevent unmarried partners of parents from staying overnight in a house with children.

"This sets the right precedent for LGBT parents – and any unmarried parent in Alabama because LGBT people and unmarried parents have just as much right to their children as heterosexual couples," said SPLC senior staff attorney Sam Wolfe in a statement on the SPLC website.