Defense of Marriage Act, or DOMA, is the short title of a
federal lawFederal law is the body of law created by the federal government of a country. A federal government is formed when a group of political units, such as states or provinces join together in a federation, surrendering their individual sovereignty and many powers to the central government while...
of the
United StatesThe United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
passed on September 21, 1996 as Public Law No. 104-199, 110 Stat. 2419. Its provisions are codified at and . The law has two effects:
- No state
A U.S. state is any one of 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government . Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile...
(or other political subdivision within the United StatesThe political units and divisions of the United States include:*The 50 states , which are typically divided into counties and sometimes townships, and further divided into incorporated cities, towns, villages, and other types of municipalities, and other autonomous or subordinate public authorities...
) needs to treat a relationship between persons of the same sex as a marriageSame-sex marriage is a term used to describe a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Other terms used to describe this type of recognition include gay marriage or gender-neutral marriage.Same-sex marriage is a civil rights,...
, even if the relationship is considered a marriage in another state.
- The federal government
The federal government of the United States is the central government entity established by the United States Constitution, which shares sovereignty over the United States with the governments of the individual U.S. states. The federal government has three branches: the legislative, executive, and...
defines marriage as a legal union exclusively between one man and one woman.
The bill was passed by Congress by a vote of 85-14 in the
SenateThe United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral United States Congress, the lower house being the House of Representatives. The composition and powers of the Senate and the House are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution . Each U.S state is represented by two senators,...
and a vote of 342-67 in the
House of RepresentativesThe United States House of Representatives, commonly referred to as the "House," is the lower house of the bicameral United States Congress, the upper house being the United States Senate. The composition and powers of the House and the Senate are established in Article One of the Constitution...
, and was signed into law by
PresidentThe President of the United States is the head of state and head of government of the United States and is the highest political official in the United States by influence and recognition...
Bill ClintonWilliam Jefferson "Bill" Clinton was the 42nd President of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He was the third-youngest president; only Theodore Roosevelt and John F. Kennedy were younger when entering office...
on September 21, 1996.
At the time of passage, it was expected that Hawaii (and possibly other states) would soon legalize same-sex marriage, whether by
legislationLegislation is law which has been promulgated by a legislature or other governing body, or the process of making it. The term may refer to a single law, or the collective body of enacted law, while "statute" is also used to refer to a single law...
or
judicial interpretationJudicial interpretation is a theory or mode of thought that explains how the judiciary should interpret the law, particularly constitutional documents and legislation...
of either the state or federal constitution. Opponents of such recognition feared (and many proponents hoped) that the other states would then be required to recognize such marriages under the
Full Faith and Credit ClauseArticle IV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, commonly known as the Full Faith and Credit Clause, addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings" of other states. According to the Supreme Court, there is a...
of the
United States ConstitutionThe Constitution of the United States of America is the supreme law of the United States. It is the foundation and source of the legal authority underlying the existence of the United States of America and the federal government of the United States...
.
Four states (
MassachusettsSame-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Massachusetts began on May 17, 2004, as a result of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that it was unconstitutional under the Massachusetts constitution to allow only heterosexual couples to marry...
,
ConnecticutConnecticut joined Massachusetts as one of two states in the U.S. to perform marriages of same-sex couples on November 12, 2008. Connecticut was the third state to do so, however California stopped performing same-sex marriages after November 5, 2008....
,
IowaSame-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Iowa became legal on April 27, 2009.Iowa's first dealings with same-sex marriage came in 1998, after recent court cases starting in Hawaii found that denying the right to marry to same-sex couples was incompatible with the Equal Protection Clause of the state...
, and Vermont) currently allow same-sex marriage (with
MaineA bill to allow same-sex marriage in Maine was signed into law on May 6, 2009. Maine is the fifth U.S. state to recognize same-sex marriages, and the second to do so through a legislative process rather than through a judicial ruling...
and New Hampshire having passed not-yet-implemented legislation to join that list), five states recognize some alternative form of same-sex union, twelve states ban any recognition of any form of same-sex unions including
civil unionA civil union is a legally recognized union similar to marriage. Beginning with Denmark in 1989, civil unions under one name or another have been established by law in many developed countries in order to provide same-sex couples with rights, benefits, and responsibilities similar to opposite-sex...
, twenty-eight states have adopted amendments to their state constitution prohibiting same-sex marriage, and another twenty states have enacted state-level statutes to the same effect.
Text
The following excerpts are the main provisions of the Act:
Powers reserved to the states:
No State, territory, or possession of the United States, or Indian tribe, shall be required to give effect to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State, territory, possession, or tribe respecting a relationship between persons of the same sex that is treated as a marriage under the laws of such other State, territory, possession, or tribe, or a right or claim arising from such relationship.
Definition of 'marriage' and 'spouse':
In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife.
Legal history
In the 1993 case
Baehr v. Lewin (name later changed to
Baehr v. Miike), the
Hawaii State Supreme CourtThe Hawaii State Supreme Court is the highest court of the State of Hawaii in the United States. Its decisions are binding on all other courts of the Hawaii State Judiciary. The principal purpose of the Supreme Court is to review the decisions of the trial courts in which appeals have been granted...
ruled that the state must show a compelling interest in prohibiting same-sex marriage. This prompted concern among opponents of same-sex marriage that the state might legalize it, and that eventually other states would recognize same-sex marriages performed in Hawaii. The Defense of Marriage Act is designed to prevent states from being required to recognize the marriage of same-sex couples in other states.
The Defense of Marriage Act was authored by then Georgia Representative
Bob BarrRobert Laurence "Bob" Barr, Jr. is a former federal prosecutorand a former member of the United States House of Representatives. He represented Georgia's 7th congressional district as a Republican from 1995 to 2003...
, then a Republican, and signed into law by President Bill Clinton, a Democrat, on September 21, 1996, after moving through a legislative fast track and overwhelming approval in both houses of the Republican-controlled U.S. Congress. Its Congressional sponsors stated, "[T]he bill amends the U.S. Code to make explicit what has been understood under federal law for over 200 years; that a marriage is the legal union of a man and a woman as husband and wife, and a spouse is a husband or wife of the opposite sex." Barr has since apologized for his sponsorship of the DOMA and thinks it should be repealed, saying it violates the principles of federalism.
The
legislative historyLegislative history includes any of various materials generated in the course of creating legislation, such as committee reports, analysis by legislative counsel, committee hearings, floor debates, and histories of actions taken...
of the bill asserts authority to enact the law under Article IV Sec. 1, which grants Congress power to determine "the effect" of such full faith and credit. Proponents made clear their purpose to normalize heterosexual marriage on a federal level, while still allowing each state to decide individually whether to recognize
same-sex unionsSame-sex marriage is a term used to describe a legally or socially recognized marriage between two persons of the same biological sex or social gender. Other terms used to describe this type of recognition include gay marriage or gender-neutral marriage.Same-sex marriage is a civil rights,...
from other states. Opponents have questioned whether the power asserted extends so far as to permit non-recognition altogether, have argued that the law is unconstitutionally vague by leaving out essential details, and assert a constitutional right to same-sex marriage.
Although Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act into law during his re-election campaign in 1996 and opposed same-sex marriage, he did not mention the law (or the controversy surrounding it) in his 2004 memoir,
My LifeMy Life is a 2004 autobiography written by former President of the United States Bill Clinton, who left office on January 20, 2001. The book was published by the Knopf Publishing Group; the book sold in excess of 2,250,000 copies...
.
In a June 1996 interview in the
gayThe term gay was originally used, until well into the mid-20th century, primarily to refer to feelings of being "carefree", "happy", or "bright and showy"; it had also come to acquire some connotations of "immorality" as early as 1637....
and
lesbianLesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
magazine
The AdvocateThe Advocate is an American lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender monthly newsmagazine. Established in 1967, it is the oldest continuing LGBT publication in the United States....
, Clinton said: "I remain opposed to same-sex marriage. I believe marriage is an institution for the union of a man and a woman. This has been my long-standing position, and it is not being reviewed or reconsidered." Over time, Clinton's personal views on same-sex marriage have shifted. During an address to the Campus Progress National Conference, delivered on July 8, 2009, in Washington D.C., Clinton reportedly said: "I personally support people doing what they want to do. I think it's wrong for someone to stop someone else from doing that [gay marriage]." Clinton, however, added that he doesn't believe that it is a "federal question", stating, "I think all these states that do it should do it."
President
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office, as well as the first president born in Hawaii...
's political platform included full repeal of DOMA. However, on June 12, 2009 the Department of Justice issued a brief defending the constitutionality of DOMA in the case of
Smelt v. United States of America, suggesting a sharp reversal by the Obama administration. This measure drew much anger from organizations in favor of same-sex marriage such as the
Human Rights CampaignThe Human Rights Campaign is the largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender lobbying group and political action committee in the United States, claiming over 725,000 members and supporters, though this membership count is disputed...
and the
Empowering Spirits FoundationThe Empowering Spirits Foundation is a national non-profit, non-partisan lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender grassroots based civil rights organization in the United States...
, especially for the brief's specific arguments. On June 15, 2009,
Human Rights CampaignThe Human Rights Campaign is the largest lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender lobbying group and political action committee in the United States, claiming over 725,000 members and supporters, though this membership count is disputed...
President
Joe SolmoneseJoe Solmonese was appointed President of the Human Rights Campaign of the United States and its affiliate, the Human Rights Campaign Foundation, on March 9, 2005. A native of Attleboro, Massachusetts, Solmonese, aged 40 at the time of his appointment, lives in Washington, D.C...
sent a four page letter to President
Barack ObamaBarack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office, as well as the first president born in Hawaii...
in response to the Department of Justice brief, in which he laid out the case of
LGBTLGBT is an initialism referring collectively to lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people. In use since the 1990s, the term “LGBT” is an adaptation of the initialism “LGB” which itself started replacing the phrase “gay community” which many within LGBT communities felt did not represent...
people as equal human beings and urged, "We call on you to put your principles into action and send legislation repealing DOMA to Congress.
On September 15, 2009, representatives Jerry Nadler of
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
,
Tammy BaldwinTammy Suzanne Green Baldwin is an American politician, and has been a Democratic member of the United States House of Representatives since 1999, representing .-Early life and career:...
of
WisconsinWisconsin is one of the fifty U.S. states. Located in the north-central United States, Wisconsin is considered part of the Midwest. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michigan to the northeast, and Lake Superior to the...
, and
Jared PolisJared Schutz Polis is an American entrepreneur, philanthropist, and Democratic politician from the state of Colorado. In the late 1990s he changed his name "to honor my mother's maiden name". A former chairman of the Colorado State Board of Education, he was elected to the U.S...
of
ColoradoColorado is a U.S. state located in the Rocky Mountain region of the United States of America. It may also be considered to be part of the Western and Southwestern regions of the United States. Colorado entered statehood in 1876 and was nicknamed the “Centennial State”...
introduced the
Respect for Marriage ActThe Respect for Marriage Act of 2009, or RFMA , is a proposed bill in the United States House of Representatives that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and allow the U.S. federal government to provide benefits to couples in a same-sex marriage; the bill would not compel individual states to...
, which would repeal DOMA. The bill had 91 original cosponsors.
Constitutionality
The constitutional issues most relevant to DOMA are the
Due ProcessDue process alternatively due process of law or the process that is due, is the principle that the government must respect all of the legal rights that are owed to a person according to the law...
and
Equal Protection ClauseThe Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "o state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"...
s of the
Fourteenth AmendmentThe Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, along with the Thirteenth and Fifteenth Amendments, was adopted after the Civil War as one of the Reconstruction Amendments. It was adopted on July 9, 1868....
, which is concerned with the "definition of 'marriage' and 'spouse'" section of DOMA and the
Full Faith and Credit ClauseArticle IV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, commonly known as the Full Faith and Credit Clause, addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings" of other states. According to the Supreme Court, there is a...
, which is primarily concerned with the "powers reserved to the states" section of DOMA.
A fundamental right to marriage — at least "marriage" defined as one man and one woman — overriding the provisions of state law, was found in
Loving v. VirginiaLoving v. Virginia, , was a landmark civil rights case in which the United States Supreme Court, by a 9-0 vote, declared Virginia's anti-miscegenation statute, the "Racial Integrity Act of 1924", unconstitutional, thereby overturning Pace v...
,
Zablocki v. RedhailZablocki v. Redhail, 434 U.S. 374 , was a U.S. Supreme Court decision that held that Wisconsin Statutes §§ 245.10 , , violated the Fourteenth Amendment equal protection clause. § 245.10 required noncustodial parents who were Wisconsin residents attempting to marry inside or outside of Wisconsin...
, and
Turner v. SafleyTurner v. Safley, 482 U.S. 78 , was a U.S. Supreme Court decision involving the constitutionality of prison regulations. Applying a lower standard of review due to the reduced liberty and greater security needs of the prison context, the Court upheld a regulation that prohibited inmates at one...
. The
Full Faith and Credit ClauseArticle IV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, commonly known as the Full Faith and Credit Clause, addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings" of other states. According to the Supreme Court, there is a...
of the United States Constitution obligates states to give "Full Faith and Credit ... to the public Acts, Records, and judicial Proceedings of every other State." The Effects Clause (Art IV, § 1) grants Congress the authority to "prescribe the manner in which such acts, records and proceedings shall be proved, and the effect thereof." Whether DOMA is an appropriate exercise of this power is disputed.
Critics of DOMA argue that the law is unconstitutional on several grounds:
- DOMA exceeds congressional authority in violation of the Tenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Tenth Amendment of the United States Constitution, which is part of the Bill of Rights, was ratified on December 15, 1791...
.
- Congress over-reached its authority under the Full Faith and Credit Clause.
- The law illegally discriminates and violates the Equal Protection Clause
The Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "o state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"...
.
- The law violates the fundamental right to marriage under the due process
Due process alternatively due process of law or the process that is due, is the principle that the government must respect all of the legal rights that are owed to a person according to the law...
clause.
Supporters of DOMA argue that the act is a legitimate exercise of Congressional power under the
Full Faith and Credit ClauseArticle IV, Section 1 of the United States Constitution, commonly known as the Full Faith and Credit Clause, addresses the duties that states within the United States have to respect the "public acts, records, and judicial proceedings" of other states. According to the Supreme Court, there is a...
and does not violate either the
Equal Protection ClauseThe Equal Protection Clause, part of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution, provides that "o state shall ... deny to any person within its jurisdiction the equal protection of the laws"...
or the
due processDue process alternatively due process of law or the process that is due, is the principle that the government must respect all of the legal rights that are owed to a person according to the law...
clause of the United States Constitution.
Federal Courts that have heard direct challenges to DOMA have agreed with supporters of DOMA on these points (See: In re Kandu, 315 B.R. 123, 138 (Bankr. D. Wash. 2004) and Wilson v Ake 18 FLW Fed D 175 (2005)).
In 2009, 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Stephen Reinhardt declared DOMA unconstitutional in a case where the federal government refused to grant spousal benefits to Tony Sears, the husband of deputy federal public defender Brad Levenson. As an employee of the federal judiciary, Levenson is prohibited from suing in federal court. Hence this case was handled by Reinhardt in his capacity as a dispute resolution official.
On March 3, 2009,
GLADGlad can refer to:*Glad , ruler in the territory of Banat, who was defeated by the Magyars during the 10th century*GLAD , GLancing Angle Deposition*Glad , an American brand of household plastic bags and containers...
filed a
Federal CourtThe 94 United States district courts are the general trial courts of the United States federal court system. Both civil and criminal cases are filed in the district court, which is a court of law, equity, and admiralty. There is a United States bankruptcy court associated with each United States...
challenge,
Gill v. OPM based on the Equal Protection Clause and the federal government's heretofore consistent deference to each state's definition of marriage. It questions only the DOMA provision that the federal government does not have to recognize same-sex marriages.
Several challenges to the law's constitutionality have been appealed to the
United States Supreme CourtThe Supreme Court of the United States is the highest judicial body in the United States, and leads the federal judiciary. It consists of the Chief Justice of the United States and eight Associate Justices, who are nominated by the President and confirmed with the "advice and consent" of the Senate...
, but so far the Court has declined to review any such case. Many states have still not decided whether to recognize other states' same-sex marriages, as only
IowaSame-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Iowa became legal on April 27, 2009.Iowa's first dealings with same-sex marriage came in 1998, after recent court cases starting in Hawaii found that denying the right to marry to same-sex couples was incompatible with the Equal Protection Clause of the state...
,
CaliforniaThe status of same-sex marriage in California is unique among the fifty U.S. states, in that the state formerly granted marriage licenses to same-sex couples but no longer does so. The period of granting such licenses began on June 16, 2008, due to a ruling by the state supreme court based on an...
,
ConnecticutConnecticut joined Massachusetts as one of two states in the U.S. to perform marriages of same-sex couples on November 12, 2008. Connecticut was the third state to do so, however California stopped performing same-sex marriages after November 5, 2008....
, Vermont, and
MassachusettsSame-sex marriage in the U.S. state of Massachusetts began on May 17, 2004, as a result of the Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts ruling in Goodridge v. Department of Public Health that it was unconstitutional under the Massachusetts constitution to allow only heterosexual couples to marry...
have issued licenses for same-sex marriages.
On March 9, 2009, Arthur Smelt and Christopher Hammer filed a lawsuit,
Smelt v. United States of America in
Orange County, CaliforniaOrange County is a county in Southern California, United States. Its county seat is Santa Ana. As of the 2000 census, its population was 2,846,293, though a July 2008 estimate placed the population at 3,010,759, making it the second most populous county in California, behind Los Angeles County and...
, seeking to reverse DOMA and Proposition 8 as unconstitutional. On June 12, 2009 the Department of Justice issued a brief defending the constitutionality of DOMA.
On July 8, 2009, Massachusetts Attorney General
Martha CoakleyMartha Mary Coakley is the Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts and a candidate in the special election to fill the Class 1 seat in the United States Senate made vacant by the death of Senator Ted Kennedy...
filed a suit,
Commonwealth v. United States Department of Health and Human Services, challenging the constitutionality of DOMA. The suit claims that Congress "overstepped its authority, undermined states' efforts to recognize marriages between same-sex couples, and codified an animus towards gay and lesbian people."
DOMA and state legislation
Since the passage of DOMA, there has been an increased focus on the variety among states with regard to the legal status of same-sex marriage. Some states have proactively, by legislation or referendum, determined that they will not recognize same-sex marriages.
Opponents of same-sex marriage assert that the issue should be decided by a simple majority in a single election or through the legislative process, rather than by the judiciary in its interpretation of the constitution.
Gay rights advocates, conversely, feel that not even legislative action or a popular majority can deny a minority a fundamental right. Since the United States system of checks and balances leaves it to the judiciary branch to protect the fundamental rights of minority groups against the
tyranny of the majorityThe phrase tyranny of the majority, used in discussing systems of democracy and majority rule, is a criticism of the scenario in which decisions made by a majority under that system would place that majority's interests so far above a dissenting individual's interest that that individual would be...
, advocates believe that the judiciary should strike down gender-restrictive marriage laws in the same way it struck down racially-restrictive marriage laws.
Currently Connecticut, Iowa, Massachusetts and Vermont are the only states that allow marriages between persons of the same sex, although they will also be permitted Maine as of September 2009 and in New Hampshire as of January 2010. California legalized same-sex marriage on June 16, 2008, but on November 8, 2008, voters passed a proposition to restrict marriage to members of the opposite sex.
New York and Washington DC recognize such marriages from other jurisdictions. Other states may recognize such a marriage as a civil union or domestic partnership (Nevada and New Jersey).
Some states recognize civil unions to represent same-sex relationships, considering them equivalent to marriage. Other states (including Nevada) have domestic partnerships in place to grant same-sex relationships some of the benefits the state bestows on married couples. However, there are procedural differences such as differing age limitations (in many states, the legal age to marry is 16, while the legal age to enter into a domestic partnership is 18), residential requirements (married individuals are not required to live in the same residence with their spouse, while domestic partners are required to share a residence, although in states such as Nevada such co-residency may be part-time).
A majority of the states, including those that have some benefits for same-sex relationships, have restricted recognition of marriage to unions of one man and one woman in state law, have some law defining marriage as such, or have an amendment to their state constitution to that effect. As of April 2009, 29 states have enacted constitutional amendments defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman, and another 13 states have statutory bans (this includes Maine, which has approved a same-sex marriage bill that may be subject to a referendum).
Repeal Attempts
On September 15, 2009, Democratic Congressman
Jerrold NadlerJerrold Lewis "Jerry" Nadler, is an American politician from New York City. A liberal Democrat, Nadler represents New York's 8th congressional district, which includes parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn in New York City....
from
New YorkNew York is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States and is the nation's third most populous. The state is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
introduced legislation called the
Respect for Marriage ActThe Respect for Marriage Act of 2009, or RFMA , is a proposed bill in the United States House of Representatives that would repeal the Defense of Marriage Act and allow the U.S. federal government to provide benefits to couples in a same-sex marriage; the bill would not compel individual states to...
to repeal DOMA. The bill has 91 original co-sponsors in the House of Representatives. However, gay statesmen
Barney FrankBarney Frank is the United States House Representative for since 1981. He is a member of the Democratic Party. In 1982, he won his first full term, and he has been re-elected ever since by wide margins...
and
John BerryMorrell John Berry is an American administrator and director of the United States Office of Personnel Management.Berry was born in Montgomery County, Maryland, to parents who worked for the federal government...
do not support RFMA, stating that "the backbone is not there" in Congress. Frank and Berry suggest that it would be quicker to overturn DOMA through lawsuits such as
Gill v. Office of Personnel Management filed by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders
See also
- Baker v. Nelson
Baker v. Nelson, 291 Minn. 310 , 409 U.S. 810 , was a case in which the Minnesota Supreme Court ruled that Minnesota law limited marriage to opposite-sex couples, and that this limitation did not violate the United States Constitution. The plaintiffs appealed, and the United States Supreme Court,...
- LGBT rights in the United States
- Marriage Act
-Canada:-New ZealandUnited Kingdom:Extent unknown by author:-Canada::The Civil Marriage Act passed in Canada explicitly permitting same-sex marriages.-New Zealand::The Marriage Act 1854, first law in the colony governing marriage:The Marriage Act 1955...
- Marriage Protection Act
The Marriage Protection Act of 2007 is a bill in the U.S. Congress to amend the federal judicial code to deny federal courts jurisdiction to hear or decide any question pertaining to the interpretation of the Defense of Marriage Act or the MPA...
- Same-sex marriage in the United States
Same-sex marriage, also referred to as gay marriage or marriage equality, is a marriage between two persons of the same sex. The federal government of the United States does not recognize the marriages of same sex couples and is prohibited from doing so by the Defense of Marriage Act...
- Same-sex unions in the United States
Same-sex unions in the United States are legally recognized in some states and municipalities in various forms. These are same-sex marriage, civil unions, domestic partnerships, and reciprocal beneficiary relationships. Legally recognized same-sex unions can be formed in twelve states and the...
External links