A bill is under consideration that would update the Family Code with gender-neutral language.
Currently, the California Family Code defines marriage as between a man and a woman. A bill that would replace this language with gender-neutral terms accommodating gay marriage has passed the Senate and may soon become law. The bill, known as SB1306, would redefine marriage as a personal relation arising from a civil contract between two people and also enable gay individuals married outside the state of California to have their same-sex marriages recognized in California.
While detractors of the bill balk at excising the “man and woman” language, supports point out that marriage in California has essentially already been redefined. All the bill does is bring the language of the Family Code into alignment with the reality of marriage already ongoing in our state.
This bill comes on the heels of years of legal changes regarding same-sex marriage in California:
January 2000: California allows same-sex couples to register as domestic partners and receive insurance benefits and hospital visitation rights.
May 2000: California passes Proposition 22, a ballot measure stating “marriage” is reserved for heterosexual couples.
September 2003: Governor Gray Davis provides registered domestic partners with additional rights including custody rights and rights to government benefits belonging to a deceased partner.
February 2004: Nearly 4,000 gay couples are married in San Francisco when Mayor Gavin Newsom authorizes city officials to issue them marriage licenses. The practice is stopped by order of the California Supreme Court in March.
August 2004: The California Supreme Court finds that Newsom exceeded his authority and declares all the marriage licenses to be void.
September 2005: A bill legalizing same-sex marriage passes the Senate and Assembly but is vetoed by Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger who argues that the bill would wrongly reverse the ballot initiative Proposition 22.
October 2007: Governor Schwarzenegger again vetoes a same-sex marriage bill, pointing out that the courts need to rule on the legality of Proposition 22 before any law can contradict it.
May 2008: The California Supreme Court finds that the right to marry is a “fundamental right” belonging to everyone and therefore same-sex marriage bans are unconstitutional.
November 2008: The California Marriage Protection Act, aka Proposition 8, passes, demonstrating that 52 percent of Californians do not want to redefine marriage.
August 2010: US District Court finds Proposition 8 unconstitutional because it discriminates against gay individuals.
February 2012: The Ninth Circuit Court upholds the District Court’s ruling against Proposition 8.
June 2013: The Supreme Court also finds Proposition 8 unconstitutional, making gay marriage legal in California.
If the right to marry is a fundamental right in our society, so is the right to divorce. Whether you have a domestic partnership from the old days or a same-sex marriage, an expert divorce attorney like Torrence L. Howell can help to facilitate a legal separation from your former spouse and ensure a fair and equitable division of assets and custody.
