Giving same-sex couples the right to marry has resulted in members of the LGBTQ community in Ohio and across the country gaining access to benefits that have always been easy to access for straight couples. This has also meant that LGBTQ couples have some unique challenges to navigate when their marriages end.
When it comes to same-sex divorce, some couples face contentious issues like child custody, especially when only one of the parents is biologically related to the child. Adam Romero of UCLA Law School and Abby Goldberg of Clark University wrote a book discussing many of these very issues. The book, “LGBTQ Divorce and Relationship Dissolution: Psychological and Legal Perspectives and Implications for Practice,” aims to serve as a resource for lawyers, researchers, therapists and couples navigating the LGBTQ divorce arena.
The marriage and divorce laws that are currently on the books that oversee straight marriages may not always easily apply to LGBTQ couples. Many types of legal challenges marriage may arise when it comes to things like property dissolution during a divorce or the rights of a surviving spouse when the other spouse passes away. What many LGBTQ couples are finding is that the way their marriages are set up may not mesh with the laws currently in the book. They may have unique arrangements for property ownership in place that could make marriage dissolution a bit of a challenge.
LGBTQ couples who are considering divorce may benefit from working with attorneys who have experience working with issues related to same-sex divorce. These lawyers may help individuals navigate the existing divorce laws in their state and apply them to their clients’ specific situations.
