No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners demonstrate, marriage...
Family Law
Family Law
Updated: Marriage Equality Arrives in Colorado
The Supreme Court of the United States denied certiorari on marriage equality appeals from several federal appellate courts, including the Tenth Circuit. Those cases involved decisions from Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, Indiana and Wisconsin. Thus, in those states, the...
Tenth Circuit Rules in Favor of Same-Sex Marriage
Today, the Tenth Circuit issued its ruling on Utah’s same-sex marriage ban, finding that the right to marry the person one chooses, regardless of the gender of that person, is a fundamental right guaranteed under the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States...
The Social Security and Marriage Equality Act (SAME)
Senators Udall (D-Colo) and Murray (D-Wash) have proposed the Social Security and Marriage Equality Act (SAME), which would essentially allow for the processing of Social Security spousal retirement, spousal survivorship and death benefits for same-sex spouses who are...
Lawsuit Filed Challenging CO’s Same-Sex Marriage Ban
A couple in Adams County recently filed a lawsuit in Adams County District Court challenging Colorado’s Amendment 43 of Colorado’s state constitution, which defines marriage as only between a man and a woman and effectively bans same-sex marriage. In their lawsuit,...
Military Veterans Benefits will be Extended to Same-Sex Married Spouses
The Department of Defense announced today that spouses of gay military members will be eligible to receive veterans benefits. This is the latest announcement regarding the effects of the Windsor decision in which Section III of DOMA, limiting the definition of...
IRS: All Same-Sex Marriages Recognized for Federal Tax Purposes
The IRS has announced that it will recognize all legal same-sex marriages for federal tax purposes, regardless of where the couple resides. Thus, even if a same-sex couple lives in or moves to a non-recognition state, such as Colorado, if they have obtained a marriage...
Social Security Administration announces regulations for same-sex marriage claims
Since the Supreme Court issued the Windsor decision in late June declaring Section 3 of DOMA unconstitutional, we have been awaiting clarification on exactly how federal benefits will be applied nationwide to same-sex married couples. If a same-sex married couple...
The Supreme Court Rules DOMA Unconstitutional
On June 26, 2013, the ten-year anniversary of the historic Lawrence v. Texas decision, the U.S. Supreme Court issued their much anticipated decisions regarding the constitutionality of DOMA and Prop 8. The Windsor decision, regarding DOMA, is addressed below. The...
Failing to Update Your Life Insurance Beneficiary May Mean Your Ex-Spouse/Partner Receives the Proceeds
Rarely does the Supreme Court weigh in on issues related to estate planning but in this term, it did just that. The Court’s decision In Hillman v. Maretta centered on what happens when a decedent’s life insurance beneficiary is his ex-spouse, i.e., the decedent did...