North carolina gay marriage laws
Marriage in North Carolina
Marriage is a stern commitment. Marriage is also a legal contract.
Marriage results in many legal consequences that people contemplating marriage should address before getting married. The leading way to be assured that you have addressed these relevant issues is to consult with an attorney who has expertise in family law. You should do this well in advance of marrying as it could obtain several weeks, or even months, to draft and finalize necessary documents to address your relevant legal needs.
Prior to contemplating marriage, you may not contain previously had any reason to consult with an attorney; however, your marriage changes your legal status in many ways. When either spouse has children, or a dependent spouse from a prior marriage, obligations for past and future family endorse can be complex. When one party has significantly more assets than the other prior to marrying, a premarital agreement should be considered.
Before you obtain married, you should decide how to best handle your separate property so that you carry out not unintentionally adapt it to marital property. Separate property is defined as property that one spouse owned before
News
At a time when the federal government is moving in a direction toward the acceptance and legal recognition of lesbian and homosexual couples, specifically notable in the current administration’s refusal to defend the Federal Defense of Marriage Act in pending lawsuits, North Carolina may be taking a step in the opposite direction.
On Tuesday, September 13, 2011, the North Carolina Senate voted 30-16 to position a constitutional amendment on the ballot in May 2012 seeking to further ban gay marriage in North Carolina. The House approved the initiative the day before, by a vote of 75-42. If approved by voters, the amendment would get effective January 1, 2013.
At the outset of this discussion, it is worth noting that North Carolina law does not presently authorize or recognize lgbtq+ marriage. General Statute § 51-1.2 specifically provides: “Marriages, whether created by ordinary law, contracted, or performed outside of North Carolina, between individuals of the same gender are not valid in North Carolina.” Since that law went into effect on June 1, 2006, it has not been challenged in any North Carolina appellate court.
Previously, the legislature has voted down attempts to write a bar on
On Tuesday, May 8, 2012, the people of North Carolina passed an amendment to their state constitution, stating: “Marriage between one man and one chick is the only local legal union that shall be valid or recognized.” This amendment, which banned same-sex marriage as successfully as civil unions for straight or gay couples, passed 61% to 39%. In the days that followed the passage of the amendment, President Obama stated, “It is significant for me to leave ahead and affirm that I think same sex couples should be capable to get married.” Examine the constitutional issues around the events in North Carolina and President Obama’s response in this week’s eLesson.
Resources
Questions to Consider
- What is Amendment One?
- Which constitutional provisions or principles have been used in support of legalizing gay marriage? Which have been used against legalizing it? What other arguments are made on each side, and which are most persuasive? Is the right to join a partner of the same sex protected by the Constitution or the Bill of Rights? Why or why not?
- How has freedom of religion played a role in queer marriage laws by proponents and opponents?
- How does Amendment One in North Carolin
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