Legal Niches

Married Same-Sex Couples Need Not Be Pre-certified to Adopt Spouse's Child

Posted on February 22, 2009
A Monroe County Family Court Judge has ruled that married same-sex couples should be treated like their heterosexual counterparts when one parent wants to adopt the child of the other. Usually, same-sex couples needed to submit to an intrusive and expensive process called pre-certification when one wanted to adopt the other's child...

Guidance for NY Same-Sex Couples

Posted on January 27, 2009
Several advocacy groups have released guidance on how New York State will treat same-sex couples who married out of state. It's available here.It a good summary of where we stand, but please keep in mind that this is an emerging area of law and everything is subject to change.

Our Long National Nightmare is Finally Coming to an End

Posted on November 05, 2008
So many more bloggers more eloquent than I will write about the victory. All I can add is that I am very hopeful that Obama can start to address the big issues in a way that hasn't been done in a generation.Meanwhile, in California, gay marriage looks like it may have been overturned...

HIV Travel Ban Partly Repealed

Posted on July 31, 2008
Yesterday the president signed into law a bill that lifts a ban on immigrants who are HIV-positive. This is welcome news and a huge step in the right direction, but HIV+ travelers are still barred from entry by the Department of Health and Human Services which lists HIV as a communicable disease barring entry.

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Circuit Admonishes Immigration Judge for Gay Stereotypes

Posted on June 21, 2008
A panel of the Second Circuit Court of Appeals criticized immigration Judge Alan Vomacka for "inappropriate remarks--which included gratuitous comments on the petitioner's sexuality, as well as unfounded speculations about homosexuals in general..." in a decision published this week...

CA Supreme Court OK's Same Sex Marriage

Posted on May 15, 2008
Breaking news here.

Lesbian Reaches Settlement With Village Restaurant That Discriminated

Posted on May 13, 2008
A lesbian who was thrown out of Caliente Cab Company in the Village because the restaurant's bouncer thought she was a male using the women's room reached a settlement with the restaurant today. The bouncer refused to even look at her identification card proving she was female, and then threw her and her party out of the restaurant...

NY Times Report on Deaths in Immigration Detention

Posted on May 06, 2008
The Times describes the horrible conditions in jails and other facilities for immigrants being held by the US government, often for minor violations of immigration law. The story, published yesterday, highlights the death of a 52-year-old tailor who fell while in the Elizabeth Detention Center and later died of his injuries...

7th Cir Rules Anti-Gay T-Shirt Allowed

Posted on April 25, 2008
In a very narrow opinion written by Judge Posner of the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals, an Illinois school district was ordered to allow an anti-gay student activist to wear a t-shirt that reads "Be Happy, Not Gay". The student will only be allowed to wear his shirt on Monday, April 28, the so-called "Day of Truth" which is organized by religious zealots as a counterpoint to the "Day of Silence", which is a protest against anti-gay harassment and violence...

H-1B caps hit

Posted on April 08, 2008
Surprising no one, the USCIS announced today that they had hit the limit for H-1B visa for fiscal year 2009. This announcement includes the additional 20,000 master's degree H-1Bs.

FBI Name Check Backlog Plan Released

Posted on April 05, 2008
USCIS and the FBI have finally decided to do something about the ever-increasing backlog for FBI name checks. According to a press release issued this week, all name checks pending more than a year will be completed by this November. The name checks have often dragged on for years, and created unnecessary litigation, so if they keep to this timeline, it will mean a significant number of folks waiting for naturalization will finally be able to become citizens.

Senate to Vote on Repeal of HIV Ban

Posted on March 13, 2008
According to Immigration Equality, a bill to repeal the ban on HIV+ foreign nationals from entering the United States is on its way to a full vote in the Senate after being passe by the Foreign Relations committee today.

US to Grant LPR Status Faster

Posted on February 12, 2008
Immigrants seeking legal permanent residence will be able to obtain that status faster under a new directive reported yesterday. The US Citizenship and Immigration Services will no longer wait indefinitely for the FBI to complete background checks, which sometimes caused delays of several years...

NY Appellate Says Out of State SSM Must Be Recognized by Employer

Posted on February 03, 2008
An appellate court ruled that a Canadian same-sex marriage must be recognized in New York at least for purposes of requiring a company to provide the same benefits to same-sex and opposite sex marriages. This is in line with then-Attorney General, now Governor Eliot Spitzer's, 2004 interpretation of state law that reached the same conclusion: that New York had to recognize out of state marriages for same-sex couples if they were valid where they were performed...

Deb Price: Get your docs in order!

Posted on December 04, 2007
As any attorney worth his salt will tell same sex couples, getting legal documents in place to protect your family is essential. Deb Price makes the case here.

Spitzer and the Real ID Act

Posted on October 29, 2007
I don't understand how someone who was such a great attorney general can be so crappy as governor. New York State Governor Eliot Spitzer has made so many missteps during his first ten months in office that it really goes beyond the typical analysis being offered: that he is a great prosecutor but a bad politician...

Senate Passes Hate Crime Bill

Posted on September 27, 2007
The US Senate passed a hate crimes bill today intended to protect gays and lesbians, but they had to do it by attaching it to an Iraq funding bill in order to survive President Bush's veto threat. All the Dems, nine Republicans, and two independents voted for the measure...

HIV positive detainee denied meds in custody, dies

Posted on August 30, 2007
U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement should be the target of an investigation right now by the inspector general of the US Citizenship and Immigration Bureau for its treatment of an HIV positive detainee who died in custody earlier this month. But this being the Bush administration, there won't be an investigation or accountability...

Roll Call on NYS Assembly Dems Who Voted Against Marriage

Posted on June 20, 2007
Some surprises on the list (for me at least):Peter J. Abbate Darrel J. AubertineMichael Benjamin Alec Brook-Krasny Karim Camara Joan K. Christiansen Barbara M. Clark William Colton Steven Cymbrowitz Francine DelMonteReuben Diaz, Jr. Dennis H. Gabryszak Sandy GalefDavid F Gantt Diane GordonTim GordonCarl E...

NYS Assembly to Pass Same-Sex Marriage Bill Today

Posted on June 19, 2007
The lower house of the NYS legislature will pass a bill to legalize same-sex marriage in New York State as early as today. The bill will then will be sent to the state state senate where it will be ignored.UPDATE 10:30 p.m. - It passed 85-61.

Vermont - Virginia Lesbian Custody Battle Update

Posted on June 19, 2007
A Vermont judge dissolved the civil union between two lesbians who have been fighting in court over custody of their child. I've blogged many times about this case case before, and it is truly a sad case. The women, Isabella Miller and Janet Jenkins, had moved to Vermont after having a baby together, but the relationship soured and the child's biological mom, Ms...

New York Marriage Bill Up for Committee Vote Today

Posted on June 18, 2007
I have it on good authority that the NYS Assembly's Judiciary Committee will vote on a gay marriage bill today. Most bills go through the Judiciary and the Ways and Means committee before a floor vote, and the legislative session ends next week.UPDATE 2:40 p...

MA Victory for Marriage

Posted on June 14, 2007
Bay Windows is reporting that the anti-gay marriage amendment failed in a closely-watched vote. This is a huge and important victory--the rights of a political minority group should never be put to a popular vote.

Ex-Adoptive Mother Must Pay Child Support

Posted on June 13, 2007
New York's highest court ruled yesterday that an adoptive mother who surrendered the child to the Department of Social Services is required to pay child support until the child is 21. Dawn Ward adopted the child when he was 3 years old and just 25 pounds...

Immigration Bill Fails

Posted on June 08, 2007
Ding, dong, the bill is dead. (For now). The Senate vote fell way short, the White House is freaking, and immigrant advocates rejoice.

Bias Suit Settled Against Adoption.Com

Posted on May 23, 2007
Two adoption websites that refused to serve same-sex couples have reached a settlement with a gay couple from California that sued them in 2003. One of the websites, ParentProfiles.com, will stop doing business in California rather than allow same-sex couples to use the site...

Senate Immigration Bill

Posted on May 18, 2007
I've been looking over the immigration compromise put out by the US Senate yesterday and a lot of it is still unclear, but this is what I've been able to figure out:1. The bill will build more fences along the Mexican border and step up border enforcement...

Spitzer to Introduce Gay Marriage Bill Today

Posted on April 27, 2007
Gay City News reports that New York Governor Eliot Spitzer will introduce legislation today to allow gay marriages in New York. I'll post the press release and bill was soon as I find it.

Bush Outlines Immigration Proposal at the Wrong Place

Posted on April 10, 2007
Yesterday, President Bush described in very vague terms this year's version of his plan to reform immigration policy. But he did so at the opening of a new Border Patrol station! Talk about sending the wrong message on immigration reform. Details of his plan were sketchy and they don't sound great: guest worker program is back and no clear path to help undocumented immigrants who are here and law abiding.

New Study Shows 65,500 Adopted Children Living with Queer Parents

Posted on March 28, 2007
The Williams Institute released a study yesterday on queer adoption and found that there are at least 65,500 adopted kids living with queer parents. In fact, queer folks are raising 4% of all adopted children in the United States. They also report that 50% of gay men and 41% of lesbians want to have a child...

US to Ban Guatemalan Adoptions?

Posted on March 12, 2007
The US Government has proposed banning all adoptions from Guatemala because of widespread abuses and ethical concerns there. While I haven't personally handled any Guatemalan adoptions, I know of several couples and single parents who have adopted there...

Recent Article in Gay City News

Posted on March 06, 2007
I'm quoted in this article in Gay City News about gay adoptions and the New York Archdiocese. Should have posted on it sooner. Oops.

Ex Immigration Judge Slams Gonzalez

Posted on February 28, 2007
Some parting shots from former Immigration Judge Bruce Einhorn directed at Attorney General Alberto Gonzales. Einhorn, in a profile after his retirement from the bench, stated that he find[s] it somewhat presumptuous that a government official who signed off on a memorandum which described certain anti-torture provisions of the Geneva Convention as quaint would then lecture judges on the need to show compassion for the foreign-born...

US Government May Be Secretly Reading Your Email

Posted on February 21, 2007
PBS' weekly program Now broadcast a report Friday that makes a compelling case that the government is intercepting and storing MOST emails sent in the US. Watch the show here.

USCIS Changes Policy for Asylum Green Card Holders

Posted on January 22, 2007
The Federal government posted a new policy on its website concerning resident aliens who obtained their green card through asylum. Now, such aliens risk losing their status if they return home even for a short visit--for a funeral, for example. This is a surprising shift in policy and leads me to question whether it is outside the bounds of the law...

Jamaican Lesbian Denied Asylum

Posted on January 04, 2007
A Federal appeals court in Philadelphia has denied the asylum claims of Jamaican lesbian Marcia Forrester, despite widespread violence and persecution of lesbians in Jamaica. The court wrote that "notwithstanding Forrester's obvious masculinity and lesbian status, she failed to offer any evidence that she was tortured or arrested on any of her four visits to Jamaica...

VA Court Rules That Vermont Should Decide Custody in Lesbian Case

Posted on November 28, 2006
The Virginia Court of Appeals ruled today that Virginia has no say in a custody dispute between former lesbian partners who used to reside in Vermont. This is a very sad case where one mom enlisted the help of a conservative anti-gay group to deny visitation rights to the non-biological mom and has dragged on for some time...

NJ Supreme Court Orders Gay Marriage

Posted on October 25, 2006
The New Jersey Supreme Court has just ruled that denying same-sex couples the right to marry is unconstitutional and directed the legislature to address this within 180 days. Huge victory, yadda-yadda-yadda. Here's the decision.

NY Times Details More Problems with Immigration Court

Posted on October 08, 2006
In a follow up to an article published over the summer, the New York Times today published an article detailing the pressures placed on the country's immigration judges. They note that there are only around 225 judges and that they deal with over 10,000 cases a year--all without much support...