New York's Case moves forward

(New York, August 8, 2005)— Today, Lambda Legal filed papers in the Appellate Division, First Department (the state’s middle court) to defend a lower court ruling that said same-sex couples should be allowed to marry in New York. The City filed an appeal seeking to overturn the ruling earlier this spring.

“The City argues that the government has an interest in supporting heterosexuals who have children. But the City doesn’t explain why it’s okay for the government to turn its back on thousands of New York children raised by same-sex couples, who must go without the protections that come with civil marriage,” said Susan Sommer, Senior Counsel at Lambda Legal and lead attorney on the case. According to the 2000 Census, there are 46,490 same-sex households in New York, with over 34% of the lesbian couples and 21% of the gay couples raising children in the home.

In the brief filed today, Lambda Legal argued that the trial court was right when it ruled that barring same-sex couples from marriage was unconstitutional and denies them a host of protections that couples who are married enjoy. Lambda Legal argued that the City is wrong in basing its appeal on an outdated case that relied on the Book of Genesis to deny civil marriage rights to same-sex couples.

In her February 4, 2005 trial court ruling, Justice Ling-Cohan wrote that barring “access to civil marriage denies plaintiffs something irreplaceable.” The ruling further stated that, “Similar to opposite-sex couples, same-sex couples are entitled to the same fundamental right to follow their hearts and publicly commit to a lifetime partnership with the person of their choosing.” The lower court’s decision held that gay and lesbian couples are entitled to the liberty to marry the person they love just like all other New Yorkers are free to do.

Over 100 organizations and individuals have filed papers as friends-of-the-court to support Lambda Legal’s arguments, including the New York County Lawyers’ Association, the Metropolitan Black Bar Association, Empire State Pride Agenda, National Organization for Women—New York State, the American Psychological Association and Congregation Beth Simchat Torah, among others.

Lambda Legal filed the lawsuit in March 2004 seeking marriage licenses for same-sex couples in New York, arguing that denying them marriage violates the state Constitution’s guarantees of equality, liberty and privacy for all New Yorkers. The trial court issued its ruling in Lambda Legal’s favor in February this year, which New York City decided to appeal. On March 31, New York’s highest court ruled that the case should be heard in the mid-level appeals court, where Lambda currently makes its arguments for marriage equality in the state.

Arguing the case with Susan Sommer for Lambda Legal are Jeffrey S. Trachtman and Norman Simon of Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel as co-counsel.