With the Supreme Court overturning Section Three of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in June of 2013, there has been a lot of discussion about the impacts of this ruling on same-sex couples who wish to end their marriage or Domestic Partnership.
Since California’s initial enactment of a Domestic Partnership Registry in 1999, Divorce Helpline has been at the forefront of helping gay and lesbian couples address legal concerns regarding their relationship status.
We’ve worked with hundreds of couples in and outside of California who wish to terminate a marriage or domestic partnership, providing a high level of support, service and accurate legal information to make the process run as smoothly as possible. People are often surprised to learn that even though they live outside of California, they can dissolve their same-sex marriage or Domestic Partnership through legal channels in California. We have helped many gay and lesbian couples out of state, and even out of the country navigate the divorce or dissolution process and move on with their lives.
In instances of same sex divorce, gay and lesbian couples face many of the same basic questions as heterosexual couples. There are also specific issues unique to their partnerships that can cause confusion and distress. For example, some of the tax implications are different. The IRS currently refuses to provide tax breaks to same-sex spouses paying spousal support, which changes the way couples may want to structure their settlement agreements.
We work closely with financial experts who specialize in tax consequences in these situations and can lend their expertise to the process. We also work with couples who may have initially had a Domestic Partnership, and then later married. Some are able to end both legal relationships through Summary Dissolution, while other couples must terminate each partnership separately.
Regardless of your situation, we urge you to call us at 1-800-359-7004 to discuss how our consultation and coaching, packages, divorce mediation or document preparation services can help you work through the challenges of dissolving your marriage or Domestic Partnership.
We are here for you and will do everything we can to help you understand your options, rights and responsibilities in order to achieve the best possible outcome.