LGBT

When the US Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage should be recognized across the US, the LGBT community breathed a sigh of relief. The community thought they could relax and this would take off the pressure of fighting for so many rights.

Many clients told me they no longer felt the need to adopt a child in situation where one wife was the birth parent. They felt that marriage would protect the rights of the non-bio parent. They are wrong!

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Should I adopt my child even if my name is on the birth certificate?

The landmark Supreme Court case of Obergefell v. Hodge recognized for the first time same-sex marriage at the state and federal level.  Passage of this monumental ruling strengthened the parental rights of same-sex parents; however, parenting rights continue to be largely influenced by state laws.  In order to fully protect your family and your child, it remains important for second parents to adopt their child, even if they are on the birth certificate.  Our
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Q: Why do LGBT couples need estate planning?

After years of steady forward progress in the fight for equal rights, the LGBT community in America is now worried and anxious about its future and fears the possible loss of those hard- earned legal gains. It is absolutely critical that LGBT couples seek the help of a lawyer skilled in LGBT estate planning and its complexities.

Unlike heterosexual married couples whose marriages are universally- recognized virtually everywhere across America, the legal status of same-sex couples' relationships vary widely from state to state.
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Minnesota Lawyer Discusses Estate Planning for Married Couples in the Era of Trump.

As noted in my prior posts, the fear of a pending Trump Administration has caused numerous LGBT individuals to call my office asking how to protect themselves and their families.

While, it is unclear what the new administration plans to do regarding LGBT rights, it’s important to plan now to limit any potential stripping of hard-fought rights. I try to be optimistic, but recent appointments have not helped on this point. So, hope for the best and prepare for the worst it is!

When marriage laws passed, many couples decided that marriage was the best estate plan.

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With the looming inevitability of a Trump presidency, I’ve been getting a lot of questions (panicked calls) on how the changing administration may affect LGBT clients. This is the second in a series of posts to cover the legal challenges ahead that I foresee and ways to be proactive in addressing them.  First up. Adoption.
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Now that the realization has sunk in that Trump will be the president, I am receiving a lot of inquiries from upset (and panicked) clients asking what they can do to protect themselves.

As a result of the volume of these calls, I am drafting a series of blog posts and will put together a LGBT Survival Guide in the Era of Trump to be posted on my website as well.

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As you know, gay couples do not have access to many of the benefits that come with legalized marriage. Because of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) the federal government does not recognize gay marriages - even for those who are married in states in which it is legal. As a result, the federal tax code does not recognize same-sex unions.

So, the Tax Code treats the value of employer-provided healthcare benefits for a civil union or domestic partner as ‘imputed income’ to the employee. This means that employees who elect domestic partner benefits must pay income tax on the value of those benefits.
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The other day I blogged about elder care and how a child can financially care for a parent who has been diagnosed with Alzheimer’s or showing signs of dementia.  But what if there are no children to care for the senior?  Many gay and lesbians who grow old together find that they have no support chain to lean on outside their own community; many do not have children or close family members that can care for them.  Consider the bankruptcy case in California of two long-term “married” partners who tried (successfully) to file bankruptcy as a married couple due to medical bills associated with the terminal illness of one of the men.  Their entire support network was comprised of the two of them.  Now, by no means am I suggesting that gays and lesbians are the only people who face these difficulties, but we have more than our proportionate share of legal hurdles when it comes to trying to provide care for our partners and loved ones.
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