On February 28, the Obama Administration weighed in on Hollingsworth v. Perry, No. 12-144, the pending challenging in the Supreme Court by the American Federation for Equal Rights (AFER) to California Proposition 8, by filing an amicus brief arguing that the Court should declare California’s constitutional provision limiting marriage to the union of a man and a woman to be unconstitutional under the 14th Amendment. The government is the Petitioner in the companion case
… <Read More> Kansas Supreme Court Recognizes Right of Same-Sex Co-Parent to Enforce Parenting Agreement
The Kansas Supreme Court has unanimously ruled that a lesbian co-parent who entered into a written co-parenting agreement with her partner before her partner had a child through assisted reproductive technology (ART) can seek enforcement of the agreement in the Kansas courts, premised on a gender-neutral interpretation of the Kansas version of the Uniform Parentage Act. Ruling in Frazier v. Goudschaal on February 22, the court also found that the trial court had authority to … <Read More>
New DOMA Briefs in Supreme Court Join the Issue on Merits and Jurisdiction
On February 21 and 22 the parties in United States v. Windsor, the pending challenge to Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), filed briefs in the Supreme Court in compliance with the expedited briefing schedule that the Court ordered shortly after granting the Solicitor General’s petition to hear the case. The Justice Department (DOJ) filed two briefs, the first addressed to the merits (whether Section 3 violates the 5th Amendment’s equal protection … <Read More>
Phantasmata (Etc.) at the Philharmonic
Thursday night’s performance by the New York Philharmonic included the local premiere of the complete “Phantasmata” by Christopher Rouse, followed by Ernest Bloch’s “Schelomo: A Hebraic Rhapsody for Cello and Orchestra” with soloist Jan Vogler, and concluding with Johannes Brahms’s Symphony No. 1, Op. 68. Music Director Alan Gilbert conducted, and Mr. Rouse, the Philharmonic’s composer-in-residence, was present for the festivities.
“Phantasmata” is a three-movement suite. The second movement, “The Infernal Machine,” was completed several … <Read More>
Prop 8 Case: The Respondents Weigh In
Briefs have now been filed on behalf of the Prop 8 Respondents, the two same-sex couples on whose behalf the lawsuit challenging California Proposition 8 was filed, and the City and County of San Francisco, which was allowed by District Judge Walker to intervene as a co-plaintiff in the case. These briefs, filed in Hollingsworth v. Perry, No. 12-144, on February 21, are different in their focus, reflecting the different roles of the plaintiffs and … <Read More>
ECHR: Unmarried Same-Sex and Different-Sex Couples Entitled to Equal Treatment
A Grand Chamber (17 judges) of the European Court of Human Rights (based in Strasbourg) ruled on February 19 that Austria violated the European Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms by maintaining a statutory scheme under which “second-parent” adoptions are available for unmarried different-sex couples but not for same-sex couples (who do not have the right to marry in Austria). By a vote of 10-7, the court found that the applicants … <Read More>
New York Court Rules Alleged Gay Former Partner Can Maintain Action for Contract Breach and Constructive Trust
Justice Saliann Scarpulla of New York Supreme Court in Manhattan ruled on January 15 that Craig Massey, who alleges that he was the “life partner” of Christopher Byrne from 1997 through 2007, can proceed on his claim for compensation based on an alleged agreement to shared assets. However, Justice Scarpulla found that Massey’s complaint did not support a claim for partition of the condominium apartment purchased by Byrne in which they lived together prior to … <Read More>
Appellate Division Unanimously Affirms Dismissal of Defamation Claim in HIV/AIDS Controversy
New York Appellate Division, First Department, has affirmed dismissal of Celia Farber’s lawsuit contending that she was defamed by an email that Richard Jefferys sent to Walter Fauntroy in 2008. Fauntroy was coordinating testimony for “Whistleblower Week,” an event organized by the Semmelweis Society International, during which a “Clean Hands Award” was to be presented to Farber and Dr. Peter Duesberg “for their stance as HIV dissenters, which put them at odds with the medical … <Read More>
8th Circuit: Homeowner’s Liability Policy Doesn’t Cover Sexual Transmission of HIV
Affirming a ruling by U.S. District Judge Greg Kays, of the Western District of Missouri, a panel of the 8th Circuit found that American Family Mutual Insurance Company was not required to defend its insured, Brent Lambi, against a claim by Brian Potter that Lambda had infected Potter with HIV while they were having sex. Lambi v. American Family Mutual Insurance Co., 2013 WL 490778 (Feb. 11, 2013) (not published in F.3d).
When American … <Read More>
Orchestral Weekend: NYP/Nelsons and ASO/Botstein
Two concerts attended this weekend: On Saturday night, the New York Philharmonic with guest conductor Andris Nelsons and violin soloist Christian Tetzlaff. On Sunday afternoon, the American Symphony Orchestra with conductor Leon Bostein. My experience was a combination of the memorable and the forgettable.
First, the memorable. For the second half of the NY Philharmonic concert, Nelsons led the orchestra in Bela Bartok’s Concerto for Orchestra. I thought this was probably the best performance that … <Read More>