Normally when we hear about a parent trying to marry their adopted kid, images of a perverted Woody Allen and his much younger daughter/wife paint a cringeworthy picture. However, this story of a Pennsylvanian father and his adopted son trying to tie the knot is easily one of the most beautifully heartbreaking stories you’ll hear today.

Let me introduce you to Nino Esposito, 78, and his partner Drew Bosee, 68. After meeting at a church in Pittsburgh on Easter in 1970, the pair fell in love and have spent the past 45 years together. But after 40 years together the couple worried that they would never live to see the day when they could legally marry in their state. So in 2012, Esposito took advantage of a legal loophole and adopted Bosee in order to gain inheritance rights and other benefits afforded to straight couples. Now that same-sex marriage is legal nationwide, Esposito is trying to marry his adopted son, but a judge is refusing to reverse the adoption.

Man adopted partner after 40+ years together, but now they’re trying to undo that and marry: https://t.co/BoikNBnave pic.twitter.com/Ct4uasoKY3

— New Day (@NewDay) November 3, 2015

Judge Lawrence J. O’Toole, of the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County said that he was “sensitive to the situation,” but still ruled against the couple, recommending that a higher court rule on the issue.

O’Toole noted that revoking an adoption in circumstances other than fraud “would place in jeopardy and imperil adoption decrees generally,” according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.

But this kind of legal maneuver isn’t uncommon for gay couples. The ACLU of Pennsylvania told CNN that it learned of many couples across the country who “lawfully took advantage of adoption laws in order to protect their relationships.” Esposito and Bosee even knew of other couples who successfully annulled their adoptions in order to get married.

Bosee, who is a former freelance writer, talked about his predicament saying,

It’s sort of ironic that by doing the adoption, we thought we were getting ahead of the game. But instead of being a help, it’s become a roadblock, a hindrance, to what we should be allowed to do now.

Esposito and Bosee have already take O’Toole’s advice and filed an appeal to the state Superior Court to annul the adoption. Arguments are expected to get underway in early December. Yet, the elderly couple still feels like they’re in a race against the clock to finally have their union recognized. Bosee said,

We thought we wouldn’t live to see what the Supreme Court did this year with same sex marriage throughout the country. Now, we’re concerned we’re not going to live to see our own marriage happen

Hopefully that doesn’t happen, and Esposito and Bosee get a happy ending to their story.

Alexis Evans

Alexis Evans is an Assistant Editor at Law Street and a Buckeye State native. She has a Bachelor’s Degree in Journalism and a minor in Business from Ohio University. Contact Alexis at aevans@LawStreetMedia.com.

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