A New York State trial judge in Brooklyn rejected the New York City Transit Authority's argument that the city's law banning gender identity discrimination in places of public accommodation is unconstitutional as applied to a claim that a transit worker directed transphobic language at a member of the public seeking assistance in using a Metrocard.  In a decision dated December 29 but not released to the parties until January 21, Supreme Court Justice Kenneth P. … <Read More>

Continuing with its general policy of refraining from getting involved with questions of local law in the District of Columbia, the Supreme Court denied without comment a petition for certiorari in Jackson v. District of Columbia Board of Elections and Ethics, No. 10-511, 2011 Westlaw 134291 (Jan. 28, 2011), decision below, 999 A.2d 89 (D.C., July 15, 2010), an action by some District residents asserting a right to place an initiative on the D.C. … <Read More>

A 9th Circuit U.S. Court of Appeals panel voted to reverse and remand a decision by U.S. District Judge Ann Aiken granting summary judgment against a gay plaintiff who accused his former employer of retaliatory discharge and sexual orientation harassment in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 and the Oregon Human Rights Act.  Dawson v. Entek International, 2011 Westlaw 61645 (Jan. 10, 2011).  Although the court rejected Shane Dawson's argument … <Read More>

The Connecticut Supreme Court unanimously ruled on January 7 that state laws governing parental status should be construed to authorize listing a same-sex co-parent on the birth certificates of children conceived pursuant to a gestational surrogacy agreement, even though the co-parent has no genetic relationship to the children.  In Raftopol v. Ramey, SC 18482, the court rejected the state's argument that the co-parent would have to go through a second-parent adoption proceeding in order to … <Read More>

New Mexico Attorney General Gary K. King issued a formal opinion (No. 11-01) on January 4 taking the position that under principles of comity New Mexico would recognize same-sex marriages validly performed elsewhere, even though the state's laws do not provide for same-sex marriages to be contracted within the state.  King's formal opinion was co-signed by Assistant Attorney General Elaine P. Lujan, who is presumably the principal author of the document.  The opinion was requested … <Read More>

The Texas 3rd District Court of Appeals at Austin has rejected an attempt by the state's Attorney General Greg Abbott to appeal an order by Travis County District Judge Scott H. Jenkins granting a divorce to Angelique S. Naylor and Sabina Daly.   State of Texas v. Naylor & Daly, No. 03-10-00237-CV (January 7, 2011).  The court did not address the question whether the Texas law against same-sex marriage is constitutional, resting its decision instead on the … <Read More>

The 9th Circuit panel that has been presented with an appeal from now-retired U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker's ruling last year that California Proposition 8 (providing that only the marriage of one man to one woman will be valid or recognized in California) violates the 14th Amendment issued two opinions on January 4, 2011.  Both were issued on behalf of the entire panel and not attributed to any single member.

In one, the court ruled … <Read More>

The Ohio Court of Appeals has ruled that a gay man who donated sperm to a lesbian couple so they could conceive a child and subsequently sought a declaration of paternity was obligated to pay for support of the child.  Curtis v. Prince, 2010-Ohio-5999, 2010 Westlaw 5071195 (9th Dist., Dec. 8, 2010).   The court invoked the doctrine of res judicata (collateral estoppel), holding that the appellant's failure to appeal the original paternity determination barred his … <Read More>

While charting the progress towards equality for LGBT families as it unfolds from state to state, it is easy to forget that progress is uneven and, in some states, even seems to go backwards at times.  The latest chapter in litigation over second-parent adoptions – two appellate decisions issued in recent days – bears this out, as the North Carolina Supreme Court overruled both trial and intermediate appellate courts to find that a second-parent adoption approved five … <Read More>

Prior to 1993, when the "don't ask, don't tell" policy was adopted by Congress, there was a ban on military service by gay people, but it wasn't embodied in a statute.  It was a personnel policy adopted by the Defense Department — actually dating back to the World War II period, although occasionally modified over the interim — and it had withstood several major court challenges over the years.  From 1993 onwards, the ban was … <Read More>