Marriage | Vermont

Wi. Nan dat 7 avril 2009, Vermont te vin premye eta ki te jwenn dwa maryaj pou koup menm sèks atravè yon pwosesis lejislatif olye de yon ka tribinal. Pwojè lwa a, S.115 Yon Lwa pou Pwoteje Libète Relijye ak Rekonèt Egalite nan Maryaj Sivil ("Lwa sou Maryaj") (Gade Yon Lwa ki gen Rapò ak Maryaj Sivil nan:  http://www.leg.state.vt.us/docs/2010/bills/Passed/S-115.pdf), lejislati a te pase l nan dat 3 avril 2009; Gouvènè a te mete veto l nan dat 6 avril 2009; epi Sena a (23-5) ak Chanm Reprezantan an (100-49) te ranvèse veto a nan dat 7 avril 2009. Lwa sou Maryaj la te antre an vigè nan dat 1ye septanm 2009.

This was the result of nearly 15 years of relentless work by Vermont Freedom to Marry, under the leadership of Beth Robinson. GLAD was pleased to have been able to provide some assistance and support to the effort.

Sis ane pita, nan Obergefell kont Hodges (135 S.Ct. 2584 (2015)), Lakou Siprèm Etazini an te fè egalite maryaj yon reyalite nan tout peyi a lè li te deside ke Konstitisyon Etazini an garanti koup menm sèks yo dwa pou yo marye. Mary Bonauto, manm GLAD la, te reprezante demandè yo pandan agiman oral yo. Apre-Obergefell, tout 50 eta yo oblije bay lisans maryaj bay koup menm sèks, epi tout eta yo dwe respekte maryaj koup menm sèks ki selebre nan lòt jiridiksyon.

The process for getting married in Vermont requires the following basic steps:

1. an eligible couple submits an application for a license in either the town or city in Vermont where one of the parties lives (out-of-state couples can go to any town or city clerk) (18 V.S.A. § 5131(a)(1));
2. the couple must pay the applicable fee and receive a marriage license from the clerk;
3. the couple must have the marriage solemnized (i.e., have a ceremony) within 60 days of filing the application (18 V.S.A. § 5131(b));
4. once the ceremony has been performed, the person who performed it has 10 days to send the license back to the city or town where it was issued (18 V.S.A. § 5131(c)); and
5. the clerk will then file the original (18 V.S.A. § 5131 (c)), and the couple can receive an official certificate of their marriage.

The detailed process for getting married in Vermont, whether you should enter a marriage, and what it all means are questions that are addressed in GLAD’s publication, How To Get Married In Vermont, nan https://glad-org-wpom.nyc3.cdn.digitaloceanspaces.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/01/how-to-get-married-vt.pdf.

Wi. Mèsi a Obergefell kont Hodges, tout eta yo oblije bay lisans maryaj bay koup menm sèks.

Yes. Vermont will respect the legal marriages of same-sex couples regardless of where the marriage was performed, just as all states will now respect the marriage of a same-sex couple married in Vermont.

Yes. Thanks to the recent demise of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in Windsor kont Etazini (133. S.Ct. 2675 (2013)), the federal government will recognize and respect the legal marriages of same-sex couples.

DOMA, a federal statute which defined marriage exclusively as the union between one man and one woman, once prevented same-sex spouses from accessing the 1000+ federal laws pertaining to marriage, including taxes, Social Security (including SSDI and SSI), immigration, bankruptcy, FMLA, federal student financial aid, Medicaid, Medicare, veteran’s benefits, and TANF. Happily, in 2013 the U.S. Supreme Court struck down DOMA as unconstitutional. GLAD filed the first challenge to DOMA in 2009, Gill v. OPM (699 F.Supp.2d 374 (2010)), and the legal framework developed in that case was used in many subsequent cases, Windsor included. GLAD was also responsible for coordinating the Windsor amici briefs.

Unfortunately, one issue that has yet to be definitively resolved by Windsor epi Obergefell concerns spousal benefits and self-insured health plans. While New Hampshire state law prohibits discrimination based on sexual orientation, self-insured health plans are governed by federal law. Title VII, the federal anti-discrimination statute, only prohibits discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex, or national origin—sexual orientation is not explicitly included. As a result, some self-insured employers claim they can legally deny benefits to same-sex spouses.

Luckily, this issue is far from settled. Recently, the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (“EEOC”) took the position that Title VII’s prohibition against ‘sex discrimination’ encompasses discrimination based on sexual orientation (see Baldwin v. Foxx, Agency No. 2012-24738-FAA-3 (July 15, 2015)).

If your employer is discriminating against you in spousal healthcare benefits on the basis of sexual orientation, contact GLAD Answers.

Gen plizyè dokiman legal ki ka pwoteje relasyon yon koup, kit koup la pa gen okenn relasyon legal fòmèl oswa si li deja marye.

1. Akò oswa Kontra Relasyon: Akò koabitasyon konsènan pwopriyete ak finans bay koup yo yon mwayen pou yo regle zafè yo alekri anvan yon separasyon. Kalite dokiman sa a gen yon fonksyon menm jan ak yon akò prenupsyal. Toutotan kontra a pa konsène sèvis seksyèl epi li konfòm ak kondisyon pou yon kontra valab, li gen anpil chans pou yo konfime li valab. Kenbe nan tèt ou ke, tankou nan nenpòt eta, dispozisyon espesifik konsènan timoun yo ka pa aplike dapre kondisyon yo paske li toujou nan pouvwa tribinal la pou detèmine pi bon enterè timoun yo. (Gade diskisyon ki anba a konsènan akò paran yo)

2. Pouvwa Avoka: Nenpòt moun konpetan ka nonmen yon lòt moun (tankou patnè li) kòm "avoka de reyalite" li pou zafè finansye nan ka moun nan vin enfim oswa andikape.

Yo ka pwolonje pouvwa avoka sa a rive jis lè moun nan andikape si pouvwa avoka a di, "Pouvwa avoka sa a pa dwe afekte pa andikap oswa enkapasite ki vin apre a nan men mandan an." Si pa gen okenn nominasyon konsa ki fèt, lè sa a yon manm "fanmi" ap gen pouvwa pou pran desizyon pou moun ki andikape a oswa ki andikape a. Yon pouvwa avoka pa gen ladan otorite pou pran desizyon sou swen sante.

A person may also indicate their preference regarding the appointment of a guardian — a longer-term appointment that applies to all areas of a mentally incapacitated person’s personal care and financial affairs (and courts consider the preference of the incapacitated person in appointing a guardian). The document indicating this preference should be executed with all of the formalities of a will and should be updated to keep track of all aspects of a person’s personal and financial situation.

3. Direktiv Antisipe pou Swen Sante ak Dispozisyon Rès Moun: Dapre lalwa Vermont, yon moun ka nonmen yon ajan pou pran desizyon sou swen sante pou li si li enkonpetan, li pa kapab, oswa li mouri epi bay ajan an yon direktiv davans ki, pa egzanp, ka:

a. dirije kalite swen sante ou vle oswa ou pa vle a;

b. endike ki tretman pou kenbe lavi moun vle oswa moun pa vle;

c. idantifye moun ajan an pa ta dwe konsilte oswa pataje enfòmasyon avèk yo;

d. otorize divilgasyon enfòmasyon sou sante bay lòt moun anplis ajan an;

e. fè yon kado anatomik dapre lalwa Vermont;

f. nonmen moun pou sèvi (oswa pou pa sèvi) kòm gadyen legal moun nan si sa nesesè;

g. dirije dispozisyon pou rès moun nan ak aranjman pou fineray la.

San yon direktiv davans, founisè swen medikal yo ak direktè fineray yo konte sou yon mari oswa yon fanmi pwòch pou pran desizyon yo. Direktiv davans lan ka revoke nenpòt ki lè lè yo kreye yon nouvo direktiv davans oswa lè yo eksprime anilasyon an yon fason klè. Moun yo souvan bay yon kopi direktiv davans yo bay doktè yo epi pafwa bay manm fanmi yo.

4. Volonte: If a person who is neither married nor joined in a civil union, dies without a will, their property passes to: (1) their children or (2) their family. If the person wishes to provide for others, such as their partner, a will is essential. Even if a person has few possessions, they can name in the will who will administer their estate. If a person has children, they can nominate the future guardian of the children in a will.

GLAD rekòmande pou w travay avèk yon avoka sou dokiman sa yo.

Malgre ke gen fòm ki disponib, fòm nan ka pa adapte ak bezwen ak volonte endividyèl ou yo. Anplis de sa, yon avoka ka pi byen ede reyalize objektif ou yo, pa egzanp, lè li ekri yon testaman yon fason ki gen plis chans pou anpeche yon konteste testaman pa manm fanmi ki pa kontan, oubyen lè li nonmen yon ajan swen sante ak enstriksyon byen espesifik. Anplis de sa, yon avoka ka ede navige nan ensètitid legal ki soti nan domèn sipèpoze ant dokiman sa yo. GLAD Answers ka bay referans pou avoka ki manm Sèvis Referans Avoka GLAD la.

Wi, paske jan sa di pi wo a, koup marye menm sèks yo gen dwa a tout benefis yo bay koup marye diferan sèks.

Sepandan, jiskaske Obergefell kont Hodges Nan desizyon ki te pran nan dat 26 jen 2015 la, anpil koup menm sèks te rete nan eta kote lwa maryaj ki pa konstitisyonèl yo te anpeche koup menm sèks marye. Donk, lè mari oswa madanm yo te mouri, yo pa t kapab satisfè kondisyon benefis sivivan Sekirite Sosyal la pou yo te marye pandan 9 mwa.

Pou korije enjistis sa a, Lambda Legal te depoze de pwosè, Ely kont Sayil epi Thornton kont Komisyonè Sekirite Sosyal la, epi li te reyisi jwenn yon mwayen pou koup menm sèks yo te ka depoze pou benefis Sekirite Sosyal pou sivivan ki swa pa janm marye (Ely kont Sayil) oubyen yo te finalman kapab marye men yo te marye mwens pase 9 mwa lè mari oswa madanm yo te mouri (Thornton kont Komisyonè Sekirite Sosyal la). 

De règ sa yo pèmèt koup menm sèks, ki te eskli nan maryaj akòz lwa leta diskriminatwa e ki pakonsekan pa t kalifye pou aplike pou benefis sivivan Sekirite Sosyal, pou soumèt yon aplikasyon. Sepandan, siksè aplikasyon sa a depann de bay ase dokiman pou pwouve Sekirite Sosyal ke sèl rezon ki fè yo pa t satisfè egzijans 9 mwa a se te akòz lwa leta diskriminatwa yo.

Lyen sa a bay plis enfòmasyon detaye epi li gen FAQ pou chak pwosè epi li bay lis kèk fason ou ka bay dokiman ki nesesè pou kalifye pou benefis sivivan an:

Enfòmasyon pou Patnè ak Konjwen Menm Sèks ki Sivivan ki te Eskli Anvan nan Benefis Sivivan Sekirite Sosyal Akòz Lwa Maryaj ki pa Konstitisyonèl | Lambda Legal

Apre Obergefell kont Hodges, same-sex spouses everywhere should be able to dissolve their marriages on the same terms as different-sex spouses. Vermont applies its divorce statutes to same-sex couples (See generally Solomon v. Guidry, 2016 VT 108, 155 A.3d 1218 (2016)).  However, spouses should note that when Vermont courts divide marital property and award alimony/maintenance, one of the factors a judge considers is the length of the marriage (15 V.S.A. § 751(b)(1)(division of property) and §752(b)(4)(maintenance)). Nonetheless, the court does include, as marital property, all property owned by “either or both of the parties, however or whenever acquired ….” (15 V.S.A. § 751(a)). So, for spouses whose partnership pre-dates marriage equality, the length of the marriage may not accurately reflect the true length of the relationship, resulting in an unbalanced division of assets.

If you are going through divorce proceedings in Vermont and believe your division of assets may be unfairly affected by length of marriage, contact GLAD Answers.

Koup menm sèks ki gen timoun epi k ap separe ta dwe:

1. Sipòte dwa paran LGBTQ+ yo;
2. Onore relasyon ki deja egziste yo kèlkeswa etikèt legal yo;
3. Onore relasyon paran timoun yo te genyen deja apre separasyon an;
4. Kenbe kontinwite pou timoun yo;
5. Chèche yon rezolisyon volontè;
6. Sonje byen, separe se yon bagay ki difisil pou fè;
7. Menen ankèt sou akizasyon abi;
8. Pa kite absans akò oswa relasyon legal detèmine rezilta yo;
9. Trete litij kòm yon dènye rekou; epi
10. Refize pou w sèvi ak lwa ak santiman omofob/transfob pou w rive nan yon rezilta ou vle.

Pou plis enfòmasyon detaye sou nòm sa yo, gade piblikasyon an Pwoteje Fanmi yo: Nòm pou Fanmi LGBTQ+ yo.