Multi-State Divorce & Family Law Blog by Stange Law Firm, PC

Understanding Windsor Summary courtesy of the Political Science department at Texas A & M: “In United States v. Windsor, the Supreme Court held Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) unconstitutional because it violated principles of Equal Protection by treating relationships that had equal status under state law differently under federal law. The majority opinion was authored by Justice Kennedy and joined by Justices Ginsburg, Breyer, Sotomayor, and Kagan. Chief Justice Roberts and Justices Scalia, Thomas, and Alito dissented. Section 3 of DOMA defines marriage as the union of one man and one woman for purposes of all

Utah state attorneys filed their opening argument to the federal appeals court on Monday, Feb. 4, 2014, examining the state’s same-sex marriage ban. State attorneys contend it is within Utah’s right to define marriage as it chooses. Utah’s same-sex marriage ban was passed by 66% of voters in 2004. Although the brief states that U.S. District Judge Robert J. Shelby did not give “proper deference to the choice of Utah’s citizens” when he struck down the ban in the December 20, 2013 ruling, the primary basis of the state’s 120-page argument focuses on the contention that the optimal environment for

Even though the divorce process is similar for heterosexual and same-sex couples in Illinois, same-sex couples still face unique challenges. When couples divorce, one of the most difficult parts about the process is this division of assets. Those who entered into a same sex marriage who now want to end their union face similar challenges because these marriages are subject to the same property division laws in Illinois as heterosexual marriages. This occurred after counties in Illinois were ordered to begin issuing same-sex marriage licenses under legislation that was signed into action in June of 2014, states USA Today. Property

Along with the legalization of same-sex marriages in the state of Illinois comes the need to understand same-sex divorce. Since June 1, 2014, the state of Illinois has allowed and recognized same-sex marriages. For many couples, this was a most joyous day and The Chicago Tribune noted that numerous gay and lesbian couples chose to marry that day or soon thereafter, some even converting their existing civil unions to marriages. The state law allows for couples with previous legal civil unions to use the date that the civil union was created as their official marriage date. While for many people,