Dan Gray, Stephanie Smith, Kristen Kugel, and Anne Robinson recently had the privilege of working on an Amicus Curiae Brief filed on behalf of the Virginia Chapter of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers in the Bostic v. Schaefer (formerly known as Bostic v. Rainey) case currently pending in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. The Bostic case involves a challenge to Virginia’s ban on same sex marriage. The AAML Amicus Brief, authored by our attorneys as well as Susan Butler of ShounBach and Donald Butler of Batzli Stiles Butler PC, supports the Plaintiffs’ challenge to the ban on the basis that it denies same sex couples access to the divorce process in Virginia, namely actions to protect rights of child custody, spousal and child support, and property division.
The AAML Amicus Brief was filed among the other briefs to be considered by the Fourth Circuit in deciding whether to uphold the U.S. District Court’s ruling declaring that laws prohibiting gay and lesbian couples from marrying are unconstitutional. Oral arguments occurred in the Bostic case on May 13th and a decision from the Judges is forthcoming. The Bostic case is one of several cases that have been litigated since last summer when the Supreme Court granted full federal recognition to married same-sex couples. Most recently Federal Judges in Pennsylvania and Oregon have declared similar state bans on same sex marriage unconstitutional.