Generally, a court would look at Arizona’s paternity statute of A.R.S. § 25-814 to see if a presumption of paternity has been created. However, the Court of Appeals are split on whether this statute applies to woman and the Arizona Supreme Court will decide this issue shortly.
For now, a court will weigh several factors to see if paternity has been established. One factor may be if both parents name is on the birth certificate. A court may also look to see if there is an agreement between the parents to raise the child and share custody. A court may further look to see if there have been any official adoption efforts taken by the parties to ensure the non-biological parent is still classified as a parent. Unfortunately, the standard for same-sex paternity is currently not clear and is at the court’s discretion. The more evidence you can show that you were a parent to the child the more likely the court is to award you parental rights..