equitable parent doctrine
equitable-parent doctrine. Family law. The principle that a spouse who is not the biological parent of a child born or conceived during the marriage may, in a divorce action, be considered the child’s natural father or mother if (1) the other spouse and the child both acknowledge a parent–child relationship, esp. when that other spouse has cooperated in the development of this relationship before the divorce action, (2) the nonbiologically related spouse wants parental rights, and (3) he or she is willing to take on the responsibility of paying support. • The doctrine sometimes applies to nonspousal partners as well. Very few jurisdictions apply the doctrine. See Carolee Kvoriak Lezuch, Michigan’s Doctrine of Equitable Parenthood, 45 Wayne L. Rev. 1529 (1999). — Also termed equitable-parenthood doctrine.
