A Look At Same Sex Divorces In The United States
Same sex marriages have long been a hot-button issue for political types, and something debated in by pre-law students across the globe. However, something few people have discussed at length is the legal ramification of same sex divorces, when those marriages may have been done illegally. If you want to learn more about the law as it pertains to love, read the infographic below about same sex divorce.
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Same Sex Divorces in the United States
Currently 6 states allow same-sex couples to get married and divorced (Iowa, New York, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Vermont and New Hampshire). One state (Maryland) allows same-sex couples married elsewhere to divorce there. Two states (Washington and Oregon) have partial recognition for same-sex marriages and divorces*. Three states (California, Texas and Wyoming) partially recognize same-sex divorces**. The remaining states do not have any legal recognition of same-sex marriages or divorces.
*Same sex marriage is legal under the laws of the Coquille Native American tribe in Oregon, and the Squamish tribe in Washington, but not by the states themselves.
**California, Texas and Wyoming have all granted same-sex couples divorces under special circumstances since they did not have specific laws banning same-sex divorce.
Same-sex marriage was officially banned at the federal level by the Defense of Marriage Act in 1996. Consequentially, the IRS and federal courts do not recognize disputes involving the financial complications of a same-sex divorce. Parts of DOMA have been ruled unconstitutional by the Obama Administration, which also support a new law to define federal recognition to legally married same-sex couples.
Recently, the U.S. Justice Department has dropped its opposition to same-sex married couples filing joint bankruptcy petitions.
Civil Unions
In addition to the six states that allow same-sex marriage, 12 states allow for civil unions for same-sex couples: Hawaii, Washington, Oregon, California, Nevada, Colorado, Wisconsin, Illinois, Maine, Rhode Island, New Jersey and Delaware.
The Defense of Marriage Act also prohibits the federal government from recognizing same-sex civil unions.
Same Sex Divorce in Europe
The Netherlands was the first country to legalize same-sex marriage on April 1, 2001. Since then, both same-sex and opposite-sex marriages have experienced an equal divorce rate of 1%.
The Netherlands is noted for its liberal stance on many issues. It began a trend in adopting same sex marriage that many other European nations have followed, the most recent example being Portugal adopting same-sex marriage in 2010.
The majority of Western Europe either fully or partially recognize same-sex marriage. Eastern Europe and many countries of the former Soviet Union do not allow for same-sex couples to get married.
The UK has adopted civil partnerships for same-sex couples. Since its adoption in 2005, some 50,000 couples have formed a civil partnership. Civil partnerships increased 44% between 2009 and 2010 (353 to 509). 1.6% of Gay civil partnerships and 3.3% of Lesbian civil partnerships have ended in divorce.
