4/1/2007

"For five years, Alicia Heath-Toby and Saundra Toby-Heath fought for the right to marry, taking on the state of New Jersey in a lawsuit filed with six other same-sex couples. They learned late last year that marriage would have to wait, when state lawmakers chose to allow same-sex civil unions instead.

2/27/2009

"The argument that the ERA supports gay marriage relies on the fact that bans on same-sex marriage employ gender as the sole reason for approving or denying a marriage license. While many other factors went into the famous Massachusetts decision that legalized gay marriage in that state, one of the concurring justices cited the state's ERA, saying that the 'prohibition [to marry] is based solely on the applicants' gender' and 'may offend Massachusetts equal rights amendment.'

4/24/2007

"City officials have spoken convincingly on behalf of diversity in the past. But this lawsuit doesn't place Bellevue in a good light.

"One of the plaintiffs is a 10-year employee promoted and commended in the past but who was forced to work a day without pay after he took one day off to attend the funeral of his partner's father. It is a shameful mark on the manager who didn't think to make an allowance for a valued employee in distress.

4/15/2007

"Shannan Hauser and Jennifer Bonfilio of Hamilton say they will form a civil union in two weeks. In theory, it should give them the same benefits that married couples have.

"So when the law creating civil unions took effect last month, Bonfilio, who pays $431 a month for health insurance, inquired about being added as a beneficiary on Hauser's medical plan at the New Jersey Carpenters Funds.

3/13/2007

"Westchester County Executive Andrew Spano's executive order recognizing gay marriages performed outside New York does not violate the state Constitution, a state Supreme Court justice ruled yesterday.

"Alphonso David, a lawyer for the gay rights group Lambda Legal who defended Spano's order before Lefkowitz, said her ruling will multiply its limited impact... 'This is incredibly significant for those couples living in the state who need to make sure their marriages are going to be respected.'"

2/17/2007

"Same-sex marriages performed in Massachusetts or in foreign countries will automatically be recognized as civil unions in New Jersey starting Monday, Attorney General Stuart Rabner ruled yesterday...

"David Buckel, Marriage Project Director of the gay rights group Lambda Legal, called Rabner's opinion 'a good news, bad news decision.' He said it 'brought enormous peace of mind to a lot of couples and families' who will continue to have legal protections..."

4/10/2007

"The state House of Representatives voted to create a domestic partnership registry for same-sex couples Tuesday, sending Gov. Chris Gregoire the historic measure on a mostly party line vote.

4/29/2007

"While the state Senate remains focused on adopting a new death-penalty law, Gov. Eliot Spitzer last week filed bills on issues ranging from gay marriage to court reorganization, redistricting and abortion rights.

"... Spitzer has proposed that New York become the second state, after Massachusetts, to legalize the unions.

"'It is high time that New York values all families who choose to call New York home by passing this bill,' said Susan Sommer of Lambda Legal, an advocacy group."

5/16/2007

"The marriages of more than 170 gay couples from New York who wed in Massachusetts before last July are valid because New York had not yet explicitly banned same-sex marriages, a Massachusetts judge ruled.

"Susan Sommer, senior counsel for Lambda Legal, a New York-based gay rights organization, said New York common law has held that as long as a marriage is valid where it is performed, it will be respected in New York.

3/20/2007

"Monday's test of student speech rights arises as schools face increased violence and drug use on their grounds. The National School Boards Association, siding with Juneau officials, says administrators should have expansive latitude to stop messages related to subjects such as drugs, guns, homosexuality and abortion.

"On Frederick's side are an unusual contingent of liberal groups, including the Lambda Legal Defense Fund, and conservatives, including the Alliance Defense Fund ? all worried that credible student views will be censored."