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Family Law Commons

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William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

Defense of Marriage Act of 1996

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Articles 1 - 3 of 3

Full-Text Articles in Family Law

The Meaning Of Marriage: Immigration Rules And Their Implications For Same-Sex Spouses In A World Without Doma, Scott C. Titshaw Apr 2010

The Meaning Of Marriage: Immigration Rules And Their Implications For Same-Sex Spouses In A World Without Doma, Scott C. Titshaw

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

An estimated 35,000 U.S. citizens are living in our country with same-sex foreign partners, but these couples have no right to stay here together on the basis of their relationship. Many of these Americans are faced with a choice between their partners and the country they love. This is true even if the couple is legally married in one of the growing number of U.S. states and foreign countries that recognize same-sex marriage. The Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines “marriage” for all federal purposes as an exclusively heterosexual institution, stands squarely in their way. Reform options that would …


Same-Sex Relationships And The Full Faith And Credit Clause: Reducing America To The Lowest Common Denominator, Rena M. Lindevaldsen Oct 2009

Same-Sex Relationships And The Full Faith And Credit Clause: Reducing America To The Lowest Common Denominator, Rena M. Lindevaldsen

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

This Article examines the legal and policy implications that arise when a state that expressly prohibits recognition or enforcement of any rights arising from a same-sex relationship is confronted with a request to register and enforce a child custody order issued by another state that gives custody or visitation rights to a biological mother’s former same-sex partner. As more states confer marital rights to same-sex couples, this issue will occur with increasing frequency. The first reported case in the nation to address the issue, Miller-Jenkins v. Miller-Jenkins, has garnered attention from the national media, including a cover story in the …


Polygamy And Same-Sex Marriage - Allies Or Adversaries Within The Same-Sex Marriage Movement, Jaime M. Gher Apr 2008

Polygamy And Same-Sex Marriage - Allies Or Adversaries Within The Same-Sex Marriage Movement, Jaime M. Gher

William & Mary Journal of Race, Gender, and Social Justice

This article addresses the charged slippery slope accusation that permitting same-sex marriage will inevitably lead to the legalization of polygamy. While same-sex marriage advocates generally distance their cause from polygamy and its disparaging history when responding to such accusations, this article determines whether that response is appropriate, or alternatively, whether the same-sex marriage movement could benefit from linkages between polygamy and same-sex marriage. In conducting the analysis, this article presents a nuanced discussion of marriage and its varying forms. Specifically, it examines the United States' historical regulation of polygamy, interrogates analogies between polygamy and same-sex marriage, compares cross-cultural practices and …