Over the objection of dozens of adoption attorneys, Gov. Kathy Hochul signed the Parental Equity Act, a big departure from prior New York laws relating to consent rights for unwed biological fathers who contest their child’s adoption.

Written by Amy Mulzer, a senior attorney with Brooklyn Defender Services, with help from New York University law professor Christine Gottlieb, the law aims to bring fairness to birth fathers by granting full and fair hearings regarding their fitness to care for children who were moved into foster care by the state.