Even though Texas doesn’t recognize gay marriage, courts will let gay couples who married in other states divorce in Texas. And now in New York, also without a same-sex marriage law, gay couples that secured civil unions in other jurisdictions can head to the Empire State for … annulments.
The case concerns two Schenectady county residents, Audrey Juanita Dickerson and Sonya Denise Thompson, who traveled to Vermont in April 2003 and entered into a civil union. That state was the first in the nation in 2000 to pass civil unions law and just last year passed legislation allowing same-sex marriage. Three years later the couple separated and Dickerson went to Vermont to get the union annulled only to be told she needed to live in the state for a year before she could apply.
Dickerson then asked for an annulment from Schenectady County Supreme Court in 2008. Judge Vincent Reilly Jr. denied her request, noting that the state has no legal framework to recognize a legal relationship between same- sex partners or to dissolve such unions. Dickerson then appealed. On Thursday, the court unanimously ruled that the Schenectady County Supreme court does have the jurisdiction to annul the union.
And it won’t take a Harvard Law grad to see how the ruling could also extend to divorces. And, one hopes, marriages — oh, we’re getting ahead of ourselves.
jeffree
Makes no sense. how can a place that wont let me marry another guy, let me divorce there? So now theyre not willing to allow gays to marry or accept my rights of gay marriage but theyre willing to allow me to divorce??
How crazy is that? Haha
hunter
that sounds like they are making a statement that they are against same sex couples all together. they wont allow same sex marriage but who are they to keep you in one… what a world we live in.
ChrisM
Wow, what a fucked up policy. Doesn’t it imply that you RECOGNIZE a marriage or union for you to be able to annul it? I guess anything floats, as long as there’s one less gay marriage in the world. I would expect this from Texas, but not New York.
Mark
Actually, while New York will not perform same sex marriages yet, they do recognize same sex marriages performed in other states. So my partner and I had to drive 2 hours to Burlington to get married, instead of going to our local court house. But our marriage is valid in New York. Stupid? Yep!!! We spent over $500 in Vermont that could have been spent in our home state. And please do not compare New York to Texas. I used to live in New Mexico, 20 miles form the Texas border, and New York is NOTHING like the rednecks in Texas. They are in a (low) class all by itself!!
Frank
Only in New York, kids…only in New York