test case

— Although these decisions imply acceptance of gay and lesbian parenting, most of the second-parent adoption cases have been brought following "test-case" criteria that maximize the likelihood of judicial acceptance. The couples usually have had long-term monogamous relationships; they are economically stable; there is often direct economic benefit to the child of granting the adoption […] Also, in these cases there is no heterosexual parent or family member challenging custody, so the child will be raised in a lesbian or gay home regardless of the judge's decision.