Hawaiʻi updated its parentage laws under Act 298, which took effect today, revising how the state recognizes legal parentage for LGBTQIA+ families and clarifying children’s legal relationships with their parents regardless of gender, sexual orientation, or marital status. In a statement posted on the Hawaiʻi State LGBTQ+ Commission’s official website, Vice Chair and Legislative Lead Michael Golojuch Jr. said the changes address legal uncertainty that some LGBTQIA+ families have faced because previous laws did not reflect how families are formed.
According to the State of Hawai'i, Act 298 updates Hawaiʻi’s family law by adopting gender-neutral language in place of terms such as “mothers” and “fathers” and revising how legal parentage is established. The law expands the methods for determining parentage, including provisions that streamline recognition for same-gender couples without requiring court involvement. As a result, the changes reduce the need for second-parent adoptions that have often been used by LGBTQIA+ families to obtain legal parental recognition.
The law also addresses contemporary family formation methods, including assisted reproduction and surrogacy, such as in vitro fertilization and gestational surrogacy, areas where previous legal definitions had not fully applied. In a statement, Hawaiʻi State LGBTQ+ Commission Chair Sandy Harjo Livingston said the measure represents an advancement for LGBTQIA+ parents, their children, and families across the state.
Under the law, parentage determinations place greater emphasis on intent and caregiving roles, a framework intended to support continuity of care for children and clarify access to legal benefits such as health insurance and inheritance. The measure also includes confidentiality provisions for parentage proceedings, designed to protect family privacy during what can be sensitive legal processes.
Additional information about the implementation of Act 298 is available through the Hawaiʻi State LGBTQ+ Commission and can be accessed via the commission’s website at humanservices.hawaii.gov.
