Everything about Domestic Partner totally explained
A
domestic partnership is a legal or
personal relationship between two individuals who live together and share a common domestic life but are neither joined by a traditional
marriage nor a
civil union. However, in some jurisdictions, such as
California, domestic partnership is in fact equivalent to marriage, or to other legally recognized same-sex or different-sex unions. The terminology for such unions is still evolving, and the exact level of rights and responsibilities conferred by a domestic partnership varies widely from place to place.
Some legislatures have voluntarily established domestic partnership relations by statute instead of being ordered to do so by a court. Although some jurisdictions have instituted domestic partnerships as a way to recognize
same-sex unions, domestic partnerships may involve either different-sex or same-sex couples.
In some legal jurisdictions,
domestic partners who live together for an extended period of time but are not legally entitled to
common-law marriage may be entitled to legal protection in the form of a domestic partnership. Some domestic partners may enter into
domestic partnership agreements in order to agree contractually to issues involving property ownership, support obligations, and similar issues common to marriage. (See
effects of marriage and
palimony.)
One of the purposes of domestic partnership relation is to recognize the contribution of one partner to the property of the other. In the
common law, devices such as the
constructive trust are available to protect spouses in legal or common-law marriages. In civil law jurisdictions, such trusts are generally not available, prompting courts to find alternative ways to protect the partner who contributes to the other's property.
In the United States
Origin of term in law
In 1982, the term "domestic partner" was first used in a lawsuit filed by San Francisco Human Rights Commission employee Larry Brinkin. Mr. Brinkin, then an employee of
Southern Pacific Railway, had recently suffered the loss of his partner of eleven years. When he was denied the three days of paid bereavement leave given to married employees, he filed suit with the assistance of the ACLU. Mr. Brinkin lost his case. Despite a great deal of evidence to the contrary, the judge agreed with his employer’s claim that there was no way to know if his relationship was legitimate.
Origin of term in California municipalities
West Hollywood
The phrases
domestic partner and
domestic partnership were first used to describe living arrangements in 1985, according to
The American Heritage Book of English Usage. However, that's incorrect as the concept & term, domestic partner, was invented by gay activist and City of Berkeley employee, Tom Brougham, in 1982. In 1985,
West Hollywood city council member
John Heilman successfully introduced
domestic partner legislation for city residents and employees that was passed by the city council and created the first
domestic partnership registry.
San Francisco
However, that wasn't the first
domestic partner law in the United States. After the 1979 death of
Harvey Milk in
San Francisco,
gay rights activist
Tom Brougham came up with a definition of
domestic partnership that's now universally used, and was designed to include everything about marriage except sexual orientation. According to Brougham, the definition was that the couple must be more than 18 years old and mentally competent to make a contract. Furthermore, his position was that
Domestic partners must publicly declare the partnership and pledge to be responsible for each other.
In 1982, Brougham's definition was modified by Supervisor Harry Britt (a gay man appointed to replace Harvey Milk). Britt's version was adopted and passed by the
San Francisco Board of Supervisors, but
Dianne Feinstein, mayor of San Francisco at the time, came under intense pressure from the
Catholic Church and subsequently vetoed the bill. Not until 1989 was a domestic partnership law adopted in the city of San Francisco.
(External Link
). As of December 2006, the city still offers a domestic partnership status separate from that offered by the state; city residents can apply for both.
Berkeley
In 1983 the City Council of
Berkeley, California, under the leadership of Mayor Gus Newport, ordered their Human Relations and Welfare Commission to develop a domestic partnership proposal. The Commission appointed its Vice-Chair, Leland Traiman, a gay activist, to head the Domestic Partner Task Force and draft a policy. Working with Tom Brougham, members of the East Bay Lesbian/Gay Democratic Club, and attorney Matt Coles, the Domestic Partner Task Force drafted what has become the template for domestic partner/civil union policies around the world. The City of Berkeley's Human Relations and Welfare Commission held a public hearing early in 1984 on "Examining the Use of Marriage to Determine Benefits and Liabilities in Berkeley and the Alternatives." A policy was adopted by the Commission and presented to the City Council. A copy was sent to the Berkeley School Board. In July 1984 the City Council voted down the proposal citing financial concerns. On August 1, 1984, the Berkeley School Board enacted the policy by a 4 to 1 vote. The school board motion was made by Ethel Manheimer, a disabled lesbian.
In November 1984, all the city council members up for election who had voted against the policy lost reelection. Progressives from the Berkeley Citizens' Action (BCA) slate who replaced them had voiced strong support for a domestic partner policy. The East Bay Lesbian/Gay Democratic Club had worked hard to elect the BCA Slate. This was the first time domestic partners was a campaign issue. At the first meeting of the new City Council in December 1984, the Berkeley City Council enacted a policy extending employee benefits to unmarried couples of any
sex. The first couple to file for benefits under Berkeley's sex-neutral policy were activist and city employee Tom Brougham and his partner Barry Warren.
However, the City Council didn't create a registry for domestic partners until 1991.
October 11 of that year, 28 homosexual men & women couples and one heterosexual couple signed up. Tom and Barry were the first couple to put themselves on Berkeley's public registry of domestic partners. Leland Traiman and his partner, Stewart Blandón, were the third to do so. Also registering that day was the daughter of Berkeley Mayor Loni Hancock.
California, statewide
In 1999 California Gov. Grey Davis, a Democrat, signed a domestic partner bill, making California the first state to legally recognize same-sex couples.
On
September 4,
2003 the
California legislature passed an expanded
domestic partnership bill, extending nearly all the legal rights of married couples to people in same-sex partnerships. This erased all difference between California's domestic partnerships and
civil unions passed in other states. California's comprehensive domestic partner policy was the first same-sex couples policy in the United States created by a legislature without court intervention. The policy became effective January 1, 2005.
Potentially serious legal issues arise from the conflict between state sponsored unions be they
domestic partnership,
civil unions, or
same-sex-marriage and U.S. Federal law, which, under the
Defense of Marriage Act, prohibits Federal recognition to those unions. This means that state sponsored domestic partners, civil unions and same-sex marriages are not entitled to any Federal spousal rights such as
Social Security, Federal tax law or immigration rights for foreign same-sex spouses of American citizens.
The State of California has developed an Online Self-Help Center that provides resources and information to assist domestic partners in many areas, including
filing domestic partnerships,
dissolving domestic partnerships,
parenting issues,
tax issues, and more.
District of Columbia
Washington, D.C., has recognized domestic partnerships since 1992. However, Congress prohibited the District from spending any local funds to implement the law. The prohibition was lifted in the federal appropriations act for the District for the 2002 fiscal year. Domestic partnership in the District is open to both same-sex and opposite-sex couples. All couples registered as domestic partners are entitled to the same rights as family members to visit their domestic partners in the hospital and to make decisions concerning the treatment of a domestic partner’s remains after the partner’s death. The measure also grants District of Columbia government employees rights to a number of benefits. Domestic partners are eligible for health care insurance coverage, can use annual leave or unpaid leave for the birth or adoption of a dependent child or to care for a domestic partner or a partner's dependents, and can make funeral arrangements for a deceased partner. The Domestic Partnership Equality Amendment Act of 2006, D.C. Law 16-79, came into effect on April 4, 2006. This act provides that in almost all cases a domestic partner will have the same rights as a spouse regarding inheritance, probate, guardianship, and other rights traditionally accorded to spouses .
Maine
In April, 2004 the legislature passed a
domestic partnership bill. The law, which provides same-sex individuals with inheritance rights over their partners' property and guardianship over their deceased partner, went into effect on July 30, 2004 .
Oregon
The governor of Oregon,
Ted Kulongoski, signed a
domestic partnership bill into law on May 9th, 2007. Called the Oregon Family Fairness Act, the law would provide several major rights to same-sex couples that were previously only given to married couples, including the ability to file jointly on insurance forms, hospital visitation rights, and rights relating to the deceased partner. The law's initial implementation was delayed by a federal Court, but the injunction was lifted on February 1,2008 and the law went into effect on February 4th. .
Washington
In the state of
Washington, Governor
Christine Gregoire signed into law legislation allowing limited domestic partnership on
April 21,
2007. The law, which took effect July 22, 2007, permits same-sex couples (as well as heterosexual couples when one individual is at least age 62) to register in a domestic partnership registry that allows couples hospital visitation rights, the ability to authorize autopsies and organ donations, and inheritance rights when there's no will. This follows the 1998 passage of a bill by the Washington State legislature that defined marriage as being between a man and a woman; this legislation was upheld by the Washington State Supreme Court in 2006.
Washington State Senate Report
Other states
Connecticut,
New Hampshire,
New Jersey, and
Vermont offer
civil unions which, like California's domestic partners, are equivalent to marriage in all but the title.
Only
Massachusetts allows same-sex couple to marry, however, due to restrictive federal law, these "marriages" offer couples no more rights than California's domestic partners or other states' civil unions. Some municipalities in Massachusetts also provide Domestic Partnerships, as an alternative option to marriage. These include the cities of
Boston and
Cambridge.
Failed Attempts:
After passing both houses of the
General Assembly, a referendum on
domestic partnerships came before
Colorado voters in November 2006, but was defeated, while the constitutional same-sex marriage ban passed during the same election.
In Europe
Portugal,
Hungary and
Croatia have domestic partnerships, whereas most other nations in Europe recognize some form of
civil unions, also called a
registered partnership, or
civil partnership for same-sex partners, which afford rights similar to marriage to LGBT couples.
In
Hungary, domestic partnership in the form of unregistered cohabitation offers a limited set of rights compared to marriage (more in the field of health and pension; but no inheritance), although a growing number of Hungarian couples, both opposite-sex couples and same-sex couples choose this kind of partnership instead of marriage. The Registration partnership law was passed by Parliament, as part of the introduction of the new Civil Code, which legislation will come into effect from January 1, 2009 . Some politicians of
SZDSZ and
MSZP argue for the introduction of marriage for same-sex couples.
In Oceania
Australia
Australia, all states and territories, plus the cities of
Melbourne and
Sydney, now offer "Unregistered co-habitation" or registered partnerships (called
significant relationships in
Tasmania) to both same-sex couples and opposite-sex couples. Nevertheless, as of January 2008, the Australian Commonwealth government still discriminates against same-sex couples in 58 statutes and provisions, and bans the recognition at a national level of all same-sex marriages .
For an in-depth look at discrimination against same-sex couples under Australian federal law, see the
Same-sex Entitlements Report 2006 by the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission at
(External Link)
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