2024-SC-0143-DGE
Jackson Circuit Court
Kentucky Court of Appeals
Opinion by Justice Goodwine
Date Rendered: June 20, 2025
Issue: Whether KRS Chapter 199 prohibits unmarried couples from jointly petitioning to adopt a child.
An unmarried couple jointly petitioned Family Court to adopt a child. The unmarried couple had jointly and exclusively cared for the child since birth and were the child’s joint legal custodians.
The Family Court dismissed the Petition holding that KRS Chapter 199 does not allow unmarried couples to jointly adopt children. The Court of Appeals affirmed.
The Kentucky Supreme Court held that Kentucky’s adoption statutes do not bar unmarried couples from jointly petitioning to adopt a child.
Firstly, the Court reasoned that the rule for statutory construction found in KRS 446.020(1), which provides that “the singular includes the plural” necessitates a reading of KRS 199.470(1), which permits “any person” to file an adoption petition, to allow unmarried couples to jointly petition to adopt.
The Court also reasoned that the Family Court is afforded with a great deal of discretion in determining whether to grant an adoption in promoting the best interests of the child.
The Court further held that the Cabinet is obligated to investigate the circumstances of every adoption including those initiated by unmarried couples.
Digested by Emily T. Cecconi