What may turn into the first major United States legal precedent on the constitutional due process rights of persons born with “disorder of sexual development” (DSD) has survived an initial hurdle of a motion to dismiss. In an as-yet unpublished written opinion issued on August 29 (and brought to my attention by an op-ed by Riki Wilchins posted on the Advocate.com website today, September 18), U.S. District Judge David C. Norton (D. South Carolina) denied … <Read More>
Legal Issues
Another Circuit Court Rules against Free Exercise of Religion Claim by a Business Corporation
A third federal circuit court of appeals has weighed in on the question whether for-profit business corporations have a right under the 1st Amendment to free exercise of religion, and thus to claim a religious exemption from compliance with a valid general law. As in Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. v. Sebelius, 2013 WL 3216103 (10th Cir., June 27, 2013), and Conestoga Wood Specialties Corp. v. Sec’y of U.S. Dep’t of Health & Human Servs
Federal Court Affirms $4.5 Million Damage Award Against Andrew Shirvell
United States District Judge Arthur J. Tarnow has affirmed a jury verdict of $4.5 million against Andrew Shirvell on September 11. Shirvell is the homophobic former Michigan assistant attorney general who the jury found committed various wrongful acts against Christopher Armstrong, a gay man who was at the time the newly-elected student body president at the University of Michigan. Judge Tarnow denied Shirvell’s motions for judgment as a matter of law, for a new trial, … <Read More>
Marriage Equality Efforts Chugging Along Nicely
The lack of any big LGBT court decision over the past week or so, together with the beginning of the Jewish High Holy Days, explains why I haven’t posted anything on this blog since August. But things have definitely not been standing still in the ongoing marriage equality campaign.
The biggest deal has probably been the gradual rolling out of federal constitutional recognition for same-sex marriages in the wake of U.S. v. Windsor, the June … <Read More>
9th Circuit Rejects Constitutional Challenge to California Ban on Conversion Therapy for Minors
California Senate Bill 1172, which bans state-licensed mental health providers from conducting “sexual orientation change efforts” (SOCE), commonly known as “conversion therapy,” on patients who are under age 18, was scheduled to go into effect on January 1, 2013, but two lawsuits challenging its constitutionality, mainly on First Amendment free speech grounds, were filed by practitioners and others, leading to conflicting rulings on motions for preliminary relief. On August 29, a 9th Circuit panel, ruling
… <Read More> 7th Circuit Remands Gay Mexican’s Withholding of Removal Claim to BIA
A panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the 7th Circuit has granted a petition for review of the Board of Immigration Appeals’ (BIA) decision to deny withholding of removal to a gay, HIV-positive man from Mexico, finding that the BIA had failed to comply with a regulation governing review of Immigration Judge (IJ) decisions by engaging in de novo review of facts decided by the IJ. Rosiles-Camerana v. Holder, 2013 U.S. App.
… <Read More> New Mexico Supreme Court Rules Against Wedding Photographer in Sexual Orientation Discrimination Case
The New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled on August 22 that a wedding photography business violated the New Mexico Human Rights Act by refusing service to a lesbian couple for their same-sex commitment ceremony. The court held that the photography business owners’ religious and free speech rights were not unconstitutionally violated by this result. The case is Elane Photography v. Willock.
The case arose when Vanessa Willock contacted Elane Photography LLC by email to inquire
Minnesota Supreme Court Approves Acquittal of Gay Man Who Transmitted HIV to Partner
The Minnesota Supreme Court unanimously ruled on August 21 that the state’s court of appeals had correctly reversed the conviction of Daniel James Rick, an HIV-positive gay man who had transmitted HIV to his partner, finding that neither part of the state’s law penalizing “attempted first-degree assault by communicable disease” applied to his case. All five members of the Court who participated in the case approved Chief Justice Lorie Gildea’s opinion for the court. Two … <Read More>
Florida Appeals Court Overturns Order Requiring Psychological Evaluation of Domestic Violence Victim
The Putnam County (Florida) Circuit Court overstepped its authority when it ordered that a victim of domestic violence at the hands of a same-sex partner, as well as her son, submit to psychological evaluations, ruled the 5th District Court of Appeal in Touchet v. Jones, 2013 Fla. App. LEXIS 12809 (Aug. 16, 2013).
Sarah Touchet and Sandra Jones are a same-sex couple who lived together as a family raising a child. Touchet filed a … <Read More>
Same-Sex Couples: Avoid Intestacy and Avoid Litigation!
An August 8 decision by the Superior Court of Pennsylvania (an intermediate appellate court) shows why same-sex couples, especially in states that do not provide any legal status for same-sex couples, should take the trouble to make wills and other legal documents to deal with contingencies, pending the time that same-sex marriage becomes available in the state. Although the court’s ruling in In re Estate of Richard A. Devoe, 2013 Pa. Super. LEXIS 2129, may … <Read More>