The Connecticut Supreme Court just ruled in favor of marriage equality for same-sex couples: Our conventional understanding of marriage must yield to a more contemporary appreciation of the rights entitled to constitutional protection. Interpreting our state constitutional provisions in accordance with firmly established equal protection principles leads inevitably to the conclusion that gay persons are […]
Hot off the presses: The good news keeps rolling in this week: The Arkansas Blog (from the Arkansas Times) reports that the state Department of Human Services will drop its rule that prohibits placement of foster children in homes with unmarried couples (and by definition, same-sex couples). “Instead, it will decide placement on a case
After refusing to rule on a case involving a sperm donor who claimed parental rights, the U.S. Supreme Court issued a second rejection this week that means good news for LGBT families.
Good news: The U.S. Supreme Court today refused to hear a case “that would have had far-reaching implications for lesbians and single women choosing to bear children,” according to law professor Nancy Polikoff, author of Beyond (Straight and Gay) Marriage: Valuing All Families under the Law. The case involves a Kansas woman whose sperm donor
The Massachusetts House just voted to repeal the 1913 law that prevented most out-of-state same-sex couples from marrying in the Bay State. The bill now goes to Governor Deval Patrick, who has said he will sign it. Massachusetts was, of course, the first state to legalize marriage for same-sex couples, although California was the first
Del Martin, 87, and Phyllis Lyon, 83, will be the first same-sex couple to have a legal wedding in California. The couple, who have been together for over five decades, were also the first to wed when San Francisco Mayor Gavin Newsom began marrying couples in 2004—marriages that were then revoked by the state. The
The California Supreme Court has ruled (PDF link): We conclude that to the extent the current California statutory provisions limit marriage to opposite-sex couples, these statutes are unconstitutional. . . . we determine that the language of section 300 limiting the designation of marriage to a union “between a man and a woman” is unconstitutional
This just in from Clare of When Do We Get the Toaster: Non-biological lesbian moms in New South Wales, Australia, will now have equal parenting rights and responsibilities under the law. The move brings NSW in line with Western Australia, the Australian Capital Territory, and the Northern Territory, as well as New Zealand and Canada.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit on Thursday unanimously upheld the rejection of a suit brought by two couples from Lexington, Massachusetts, who said their school district had no right to include LGBT-related books like King & King in its elementary school curriculum. (See my August post about the case.) The parents
A big congratulations to the citizens of Oregon who have at long last won the right to domestic partnerships. From the Basic Rights Oregon press release: Judge Michael Mosman ruled at 4:25 PM today that opponents of domestic partnership did, indeed, fail to gather the necessary signatures to place the law on the ballot for
