Statement by NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell (San Francisco, CA, April 25, 2011)—Today, King & Spalding LLP, the law firm hired earlier this month by the House Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group to defend the Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, announced it is withdrawing its representation because the vetting process was “inadequate.” The move prompted the lead King & Spalding lawyer in the case, Paul Clement, to resign from his position at King & Spalding. Statement by NCLR...
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DOMA
Statement by NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell (San Francisco, CA, March 16, 2011)—Today, members of Congress reintroduced the Respect for Marriage Act, a bill to repeal the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act,” or DOMA, the 1996 law that prohibits the federal government from recognizing the marriages of same-sex couples and excludes same-sex couples from all marriage-based protections under federal law. Representatives Jerrold Nadler (D-NY), Barney Frank (D-MA), Tammy Baldwin...
Statement by NCLR Legal Director Shannon Minter (San Francisco, CA, February 23, 2011)—President Barack Obama has decided that the government should no longer defend Section 3 of the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which discriminates against legally married same-sex couples by providing that the federal government will not recognize their marriages for any purpose, according to a statement released today by the Attorney General of the United States. The Attorney General explained the...
Today brings momentous news from President Barack Obama and the federal Department of Justice about the discriminatory and offensive so-called “Defense of Marriage Act,” or DOMA. This morning, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that, at the urging of the President, as well as based upon Mr. Holder’s own assessment, the Department of Justice will no longer defend Section 3 of DOMA—the section that prohibits the federal government from recognizing legal marriages between same-sex couples....
A Statement from NCLR Legal Director Shannon Minter (San Francisco, CA, July 8, 2010)—Today, in the cases Gill v. Office of Personnel Management and Commonwealth of Massachusetts v. Department of Health and Human Services, which challenge the constitutionality of the so-called “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA), Judge Joseph Tauro of the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts ruled that the denial of federal rights and benefits to lawfully married same-sex couples is...
A Statement from NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell (San Francisco, CA, January 29, 2010) —Today, the Department of Justice once again filed a brief defending the so called “Defense of Marriage Act” (DOMA) in Gill v. Office of Personnel Development, a federal lawsuit challenging Section 3 of DOMA, which excludes same-sex couples from all federal benefits and protections given to heterosexual married couples. A statement from Kate Kendell, Executive Director of the National Center for Lesbian...
A Statement from NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell (San Francisco, CA, December 18, 2009) — Today President Obama’s Office of Personnel Management (OPM) announced that it will not provide equal health benefits to the spouse of federal employee Karen Golinski, defying a decision by Ninth Circuit Chief Judge Alex Kozinski concluding that the benefits must be provided pursuant to the Court’s nondiscrimination policy. Karen Golinski is represented by Lambda Legal in this matter. The National...
(San Francisco, CA, September 18, 2009)— Today, the Department of Justice filed a motion to dismiss in Gill v. Office of Personnel Development, a federal lawsuit challenging Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which excludes same-sex couples from all federal benefits and protections given to heterosexual married couples. A statement from NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell, Esq. “We are disappointed that the Justice Department continues to advance what we believe are...
(San Francisco, California, September 15, 2009) — The National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and the National Black Justice Coalition (NBJC) applaud lawmakers for introducing legislation to repeal the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), a law that discriminates against lawfully married same-sex couples. Through DOMA, the federal government selectively denies same-sex couples more than 1,100 federal protections and responsibilities, including Social Security and immigration benefits, that apply...
(San Francisco, CA, August 17, 2009)— The Department of Justice filed its reply brief today in Smelt v. United States, a federal lawsuit challenging the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which excludes same-sex couples from all federal benefits and protections given to heterosexual married couples. A statement from NCLR Executive Director Kate Kendell, Esq. “We appreciate that the Department of Justice has acknowledged that DOMA is a blatantly discriminatory measure that must be...