Indian Supreme Court to Reconsider Criminalization of Homosexuality

In 2013, the Indian Supreme Court shocked the nation and the world by re-criminalizing homosexuality.

Decades of progress, which had culminated in a 2009 ruling by a lower court to legalize same-sex activities, were swept away by the odd decision to reinstate a ban first imposed by British Colonial authorities in 1860. Tomorrow holds hope for change, however, as India’s supreme judicial body is set to decide whether or not to revisit the issue. Activists are hoping that the Indian Supreme Court, which is known for its progressive approach to civil rights and the rights of minority groups, will rectify what many have interpreted as a gross affront to human dignity in the world’s largest democracy.

International

Sadly, the legal challenge faced by LGBT people is not unique to India. While Britain has progressed immensely on LGBT issues in recent years—marriage equality is now legal in England, Scotland, Wales, and the Republic of Ireland—its legacy around the globe is far less positive. Of the 76 countries that still criminalize homosexuality, more than half of them do so because of laws imposed by the British Empire in the 19th century. Activists have repeatedly called upon Britain to pressure Commonwealth nations (former colonies) to overturn the archaic laws. At the opening ceremony for the 2014 Commonwealth Games, held in Glasgow just months after Scotland voted to legalize same-sex marriage, organizers included a same-sex kiss—something that was broadcast live to more than 1 billion people across the Commonwealth.

Click here to read the entire article.
Out.com by James McDonald, February 2, 2016
in In the News / International / Legal  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Surrogacy Workshop Part 1: Planning Your Journey / 2015 SF MHB

Men Having Babies created this Surrogacy Workshop in order to take a broad look at the crucial decisions and milestone gay men face in their pursuit of biological parenting. It outlines some of the typical steps and milestones parents go through, presented chronologically and as a decision-tree.

 

 

Initial research:

Check web, come to Planning Biological Parenthood meetings, speak to surrogacy veterans, and attend free consultations with agencies and watch this surrogacy workshop video. While you do not have to make all of the following decisions upfront, you may want to keep these questions in the back of your mind:

  • Consider surrogacy versus other options like adoption, foster care, shared parenting.
  • Consider Traditional Surrogacy (TS) versus Gestational Surrogacy (GS).
  • These options vary considerably in process, cost, duration, legality and likely future relationships with the surrogate /egg donor.
  • In TS, a surrogate is carrying a baby conceived through artificial insemination using the sperm of one of the intended parents. In GS, a carrier is impregnated with embryos created through IVF (In Vitro Fertilization), using the couples’ sperm and donated eggs.
  • If you decide on GS, consider various options for egg donation: unknown, known (donors who are open to meeting the children or providing additional medical history information should the need arise in the future), or even from a family member or a friend.
  • If you are a couple, think of paternity options: should one of you provide the sperm, or should you mix your samples before the insemination /fertilization? If you are doing IVF, you can fertilize half of the eggs with each sperm sample, so that the paternity of each embryo can be known, and you can choose to implant embryos from both dads.
  • Think ahead of your desired family makeup: are you likely to want to go through the process again in the future for a sibling? Would you like to maximize the possibility of having twins in the first round?
  • Consider options for establishing parentage: will you be seeking second parent adoption? Are you interested in a pre-birth order?
  • Understand the likely timeline for each scenario, and possible setbacks: the chances that you may need more than one cycle to achieve pregnancy, having to consider changing the egg or sperm donor, or even a carrier, and the possibility of a miscarriage.

Once you researched and considered these and other issues, you may be ready to decide: what professional help will you require in your process? Will you try to keep outside help to the minimum (the Independent Track)? Will you employ a full service agency – or maybe just a lawyer? Will you first choose a clinic?

See more at menhavingbabies.org

in Surrogacy / Videos  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Estate Planning for Same Sex Couples: 3 Key Issues to Consider

In the last few years, the law in the US has shifted in hugely significant ways for same sex couples and as a result, estate planning for same sex couples is at the forefront of people’s minds more than ever.

Whether the partners are married, in a domestic partnership or are together without legal recognition, there is a myriad of considerations to take into account with regards to division of the estate in the case of one partner’s death. Up to 80% of people are estimated to die without leaving a will, meaning that the division of anything they leave behind is determined by the State. Estate Planning for Same Sex Couples is imperative.  Although it may not be something that most people want to think about, in the long term it is essential to have put in place solid and legally sound estate plans to ensure that your loved ones are properly taken care of and that your possessions are divided up in the way that you want them; not at the dictates of a impersonal statute. The following are a few key issues that you and your partner will want to discuss and decide on so that, should the unexpected happen, your energies will be focused in the right place and not dealing with legal battles.

  1. End of Life Health Care Arrangements

When considering estate planning for same sex couples, it is a necessity that one considers the possibility of illness or incapacitation before their death, and the legal implications of such a health event. There are two aspects to a ‘health care directive’- the Power of Attorney for Healthcare, (in which you state the name of the person whom you wish to take responsibility for decisions regarding your healthcare if you cannot) and the Living Will, in which you can state the type of care you do or do not want if you have a terminal illness. Be sure to take into account the financial implications of healthcare and appoint your partner financial power of attorney if appropriate, otherwise blood relatives will be given priority over unmarried partners. See this article for more detailed information on healthcare arrangements.

Estate Planning For Same Sex Couples

  1. Final arrangements

In the worst case scenario, the last thing a bereaved partner would want is to have to make choices about funerals, life celebrations or goodbye ceremonies when they don’t know exactly what their loved one would have wanted. It is generally better to make all arrangements in this regard prior to needing them, and there are several aspects that must be thought of and taken into account. These include:

  • Disposition of remains (traditional funeral, cremation, a several day wake or celebration of life, for example)
  • Any particulars of the event, for example favourite poems or songs
  • Your thoughts on embalming
  • Whether you would like flowers or donations to charity in your memory
  • Whether you need a casket or urn and what aesthetic qualities you would like them to have
  • Whether you would need a headstone, and your thoughts on the physical appearance of it
  • How and when you would like to pay for your arrangements

The ‘final arrangements’ document on which your requests will be recorded witnessed and notarized and it can be of assistance to your partner when it comes to planning goodbyes, especially if there is family involved who may want to take things another way due to cultural or religious affiliations. Some States only allow spouses or immediate families to claim the body and make funeral arrangements, so if you are not married then it is worth making your wishes known to your family and seeking further legal advice, as there have been cases where the wishes of the family overrides those of the non-married partner.

 

  1. When thinking about estate planning for same sex couples it is natural to immediately want to consider the custodian and guardianship arrangements for children that would be enacted upon the death of one of the partners. For non-married same sex couples, this is of the utmost importance. Even if you and your partner went through surrogacy or IVF as life partners, only the legal parent of the child has parental rights and responsibilities unless the non-biological parent has adopted the child. Without proper planning the worst case scenario is a child who ends up in an estranged family member’s care because their mom or dad wasn’t their legal adoptive or biological parent. Time For Families provides information on second parent and step parent adoption and can give you all the information you need to ensure that your family is kept together when they need it the most.

Estate planning for same sex couples is something that many people shy away from- nobody wants to think about the sadness associated with a loved one’s death or the potential complications of the arrangements that follow. However, for peace of mind for the partners in a relationship, their children and their families, taking estate planning for same sex couples seriously is a sensible decision and one that lawyers are becoming increasingly skilled in. For more information on estate planning for same sex couples, contact Anthony M. Brown at Time for Families and speak to a specialist family lawyer to secure your and your family’s future.

in Estate Planning / Parenting / Recently Added  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Ban On Same Sex Marriages Still In Effect

Ban On Same Sex Marriages Still In Effect Alabama Chief Justice Says

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore’s latest move stating ban on same sex marriages is still effective is “sad & pathetic,” Montgomery County Probate Judge Steven Reed tweeted on Wednesday.

Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore, in an administrative order issued on Wednesday morning, announced that a ban on granting same-sex couples’ marriages remains in effect in Alabama until a specific court order is issued to end the ban.

Specifically, Moore wrote that a prior order of the Alabama Supreme Court that barred probate judges from issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples remains in effect.

Moore’s order, however, makes no mention of a contradictory federal court injunction issued this past year.

The U.S. Supreme Court decision from this past June in Obergefell v. Hodges, Moore wrote, only specifically struck down the marriage bans in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee. While it is precedent that would be applicable to other states’ bans, he wrote, it is not a specific order that would end Alabama’s ban.

“[A]n order issued by a court with jurisdiction over the subject matter and person must be obeyed by the parties until it is reversed by orderly and proper proceedings,” he explained.

Moore concluded: “Until further decision by the Alabama Supreme Court, the existing orders of the Alabama Supreme Court that Alabama probate judges have a ministerial duty not to issue any marriage license contrary to the Alabama Sanctity of Marriage Amendment or the Alabama Marriage Protection Act remain in full force and effect.”

Moore stated that he issued the order as the head of the Unified Judicial System of Alabama and under his authority “to correct or alleviate any condition or situation adversely affecting the administration of justice within the state” or take other action “necessary for the orderly administration of justice within the state.”

by Chris Geidner – Buzzfeed.com, January 6, 2016

in In the News / Legal / Legislation / Recently Added  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Gay Estate Planning: What You Need To Know

Gay Estate Planning – With an estimated 8 million adults within the USA identifying as gay, lesbian, bisexual or transgender, it is imperative that the facts are clear and that there is help and assistance available when considering the issue of gay estate planning.

Since the Supreme Court’s Ruling to make marriage legal for everyone across the whole of America, there has been an impact on the legislation regarding gay estate planning, which is quickly turning into traditional estate planning. Knowing exactly where you stand legally is of the utmost importance to you and your loved ones in case of the unexpected and at this point in time, there are several beneficial legal changes for same sex couples that you can use when thinking about your end-of-life plans and the arrangements for the division of your assets after- (Click here for a list of necessary documents) be smart and follow these guidelines to help you in your gay estate planning:

Maximize Your Company Retirement Plans

When one spouse dies, the other is now legally entitled to be the sole primary beneficiary of any qualified retirement plan (federal law states that this may be a 401(k); defined-contribution plan; defined benefit plan or Keogh plan for self-employed people, but not an IRA). They may therefore roll over the remaining plan to their own without having to take the minimum or lump-sum distributions until the year that the surviving spouse would usually take them (age 70.5 years in most cases). You now need your spouse’s written permission in order to name anyone else as a beneficiary for ERISA qualified retirement plans. Prior to retirement, employer benefits previously only available to heterosexual couples are now available to all married couples, and same-sex couples looking at gay estate planning should ensure that they are receiving the spousal benefits they are entitled to. To be on the safe side, always name your spouse as your primary beneficiary on your company’s beneficiary designation forms.

Ensure Your Parental Rights

Although a lot of the law has changed as a consequence of the Obergefell marriage ruling, one area where there is still contention is child guardianship. Depending on the State you reside in, you may not be regarded as the legal parent of a child even if you were married to their biological or adoptive parent. Second parent or step parent adoption is highly recommended in these cases to ensure the emotional, legal and financial security of the child and the upholding of the parental rights of the surviving spouse. Anthony Brown at Time For Families specialises in gay estate planning and family law and can help with any questions or concerns you may have about the legality of your parental status.

Take Advantage of Portability

Forbes goes into detail about this legal quirk along with ‘gift splitting’ in this article that was written after the Supreme Court declared the same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional:

This is the ability of widows and widowers to add the unused estate tax exclusion (now $5.43 million) of the spouse who died most recently to their own. The concept was introduced by the 2010 tax law (although the term was invented by tax experts and does not appear in the legislation). Portability was made permanent by the 2012 tax law.

To take advantage of portability, the executor handling the estate of the spouse who died will need to transfer the unused exclusion to the survivor, who can then use it to make lifetime gifts or pass assets through his or her estate. The prerequisite is filing an estate tax return when the first spouse dies, even if no tax is owed. This return is due nine months after death with a six-month extension allowed. If the executor doesn’t file the return or misses the deadline, the spouse loses the right to portability. (See this post, “The Deadline Every Married Person (And Financial Advisor) Needs To Know About.”)
gay estate planning, family estate planning, estate planning NY

Use Your Gift-Splitting Rights

 Currently, you can give up to $14,000 each year to as many recipients as you would like without incurring gift tax. Spouses can combine this annual exclusion–a process called gift-splitting–to jointly give $28,000 to any person tax-free. Spouses can gift-split by giving $14,000 each, $28,000 from a joint account or $28,000 from one of their individual accounts. These restrictions apply whether you make outright gifts to individuals or put the funds into trusts for their benefit.

Any gift that’s more than the annual exclusion counts against the lifetime gift tax exclusion – the amount that each individual can give away during life without triggering gift tax. Once you have passed the limit, which is currently $5.43 million, gift tax of up to 40% applies. Couples can also gift-split with their applicable exclusion amount and together transfer up to $10.5 million through lifetime gifts.

It is essential for those considering gay estate planning to research as much as they can on the issue. However, the information available can often be overwhelming or confusing, or you may not know what action to take once you have made decisions on these matter. For a reputable and trustworthy attorney in New York who can help with family and estate issues, call Anthony M. Brown, head of Nontraditional Family and Estates division of Albert W. Chianese & Associations, at 212-953-6447 or email questions to Brown@awclawyer.com.

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in Estate Planning / Legal / Legislation / Parenting / Recently Added  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Surrogacy Ban In China Reversed?

Surrogacy Ban In China Reversed?

Last week Chinese authorities also decided to drop a plan to ban surrogacy. Now aspiring parents can seek the help of Chinese women to act as surrogate mothers to gestate and give birth to their children. If China had banned the use of surrogate mothers, only those Chinese wealthy enough to hire surrogates overseas, in countries such as the United States, would have been able to use the practice.

Surrogacy

The Standing Committee of the National People’s Congress, which is the main law-making body in China, decided last week to withdraw the draft legislation for banning use of surrogates. The move was surprising because China rarely reverses itself on a draft law after it has been publicized. Such a move could be seen as the government being indecisive, which could hurt its public image.

January 1 marks the official end of China’s one-child policy that for 36 years has forced couples to limit their offspring to slow the country’s population growth and now may plan to reverse their ban on surrogates.

“Some members of the Standing Committee argued the surrogacy cannot be totally forbidden,” Zhang Chunsheng, head of legal affairs at the National Health and Family Planning Commission, said at a news conference.

Even if there was a law banning it, “rich people would still be able to go abroad to countries where surrogacy is allowed,” Zhang said.

Surrogacy usually costs between $125,000 and $175,000 in countries such as the United States. The cost is somewhat less expensive in other countries, such as Thailand, India and Nepal, sources said.

Infertility rates rising

Some legislators argued that domestic surrogacy should be allowed because infertility rates are rising in China, and many aspiring parents need the option to have their own babies. A ban would only encourage the vast black market in the surrogacy business, which often results in exploitation of women, legislators said.

January 1, 2016 – VOANews.com by Saibal Dasgupta

Click here to read the entire article.

in In the News / International / Legal / Recently Added / Surrogacy  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

New Openly Gay Mayor, takes office in Salt Lake City

openly gayBiskupski, Salt Lake City’s New Openly Gay Mayor, takes office, pledges to build a more ‘inclusive’ city

Biskupski’s historic election, as the city’s first openly gay mayor, was met with warm reception on a brisk Monday afternoon. A crowd of about 500 welcomed her with a standing ovation after she took the oath of office on the steps of the Salt Lake City-County Building.

Biskupski’s fiancee, Becky Iverson, stood at the new mayor’s side as she was sworn in by Salt Lake County presiding Judge Shauna Graves-Robertson.

Following the ceremony, Biskupski said she’s committed to “building an inclusive and welcoming” Salt Lake City by improving air quality, welcoming businesses, creating opportunity for people from all walks of life, and rooting out crime and homelessness.

“The people of this city are why I ran my first race,” Biskupski said, referencing her unsuccessful bid for Salt Lake City Council in 1997. “And you are why I am standing here today. It is for you that I will work every day to build a city for everyone.”

Jackie Biskupski was sworn into office Monday, becoming Salt Lake City’s 35th mayor.

Biskupski was joined by members of the Salt Lake City Council, including Derek Kitchen and Andrew Johnston, who were also sworn into office for the first time Monday, and Charlie Luke, who begins a second term on the council.

Kitchen and Johnston replace former councilmen Luke Garrott and Kyle LaMalfa. Garrott ran an unsuccessful campaign for mayor, while LaMalfa did not seek re-election.

Former Mayor Ralph Becker watched from the crowd of onlookers as the new elected officials were sworn in. Becker served as mayor of Utah’s capital city for eight years before falling less than 1,200 votes short in his bid for a third term.

Click here to read the entire article.

By Katie McKeller, Deseret News, January 4, 2016

SALT LAKE CITY —

in In the News / Legal / Legislation  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Anonymous egg donor, the secret I’m tempted to keep from my kids

I’m keeping a very big secret from my kids, that they have a anonymous egg donor, and my biggest fear is that once they find out, they will want nothing to do with me.

My preschool-age twin boys were born with the help of an anonymous egg donor. I’ve never second-guessed my decision to use IVF via donor eggs as my path to becoming a mother, but as my children get older, I’m more and more afraid of how they will react to learning the truth about their origins.anonymous egg donor

After trying and failing to get pregnant on my own in my late 20s, a preliminary blood test revealed my hormone levels were that of a post-menopausal woman. An internal ultrasound confirmed what a team of reproductive endocrinologists suspected: My ovaries had only four follicles them, and none of them were healthy enough make IVF a viable option. Devastated as I was, I took comfort in the fact that the rest of my reproductive system was perfectly healthy and more than capable of handling a pregnancy. All I needed was some donor eggs.

We looked into adoption, but in the end my husband wanted to share a biological connection to our kids, and I really wanted to experience pregnancy and labor. So after some long talks that lasted until the wee hours of the morning, a hard look at our finances and a bit of research into how much Ramen the human body can actually handle eating before it gives out, we decided to pursue a donor-assisted pregnancy.

Leafing through a binder of headshots and short biographies to choose a woman who will provide half of your children’s DNA is like a very high-stakes episode of The Bachelor. It’s bizarre to listen to your husband discuss other women he finds attractive while you try to balance any jealousy with the idea that your own children could inherit those good looks. In the end, we decided on a beautiful donor who looked nothing like me but whose application indicated she had similar interests and a personality close to my own.

We were lucky, and I became pregnant with twins on my first attempt at IVF. Through some quirk of genetics, neither of my kids inherited the donor’s red hair or hazel eyes. One favors his father’s coloring, and the other has my lighter locks. When we’re out as a family, the comment we receive most often is how we have “his-and-hers twins.”

Because we memorialized my pregnancy with tons of photos and videos, and because on the surface my children look like they could be my own, if I wanted to I could probably never tell the children the truth without them suspecting otherwise.

The idea of doing just that is tempting. Although my infertility story had the happiest of endings, the emotional pain of coming to terms with my diagnosis and undergoing the IVF process still lingers, and there’s a part of me that would love to lock it all away in a box, never to be spoken of. Not telling them would let me forget about that chapter of my life. It would also eliminate the risk of my being rejected by the kids or them feeling I’m somehow not their “real” mother in spite of carrying them and caring for them their whole lives.

But not telling them the truth is selfish. From a practical standpoint, they need to know about the donor’s medical history so they can be aware of any potential family hereditary issues. And it might be a plot line out of a soap opera, but I still want them to know they could have half siblings out in the world before they start exploring love and sex.

Knowing that telling them they were conceived with the help of an anonymous egg donor is the right thing to do doesn’t make it any less terrifying. I love my children completely.

by Anonymous – sheknows.com, January 4, 2016

Click here to read the entire article.  For more information about known v. anonymous egg donors, click here.

in Anonymous/Known Donation / Egg Donation / Ethics / Family Stories / Personal Stories  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

Ethical Surrogacy, a Proposed Framework

Ethical Surrogacy guidelines are imperative to a successful journey to parenthood.

At the Men Having Babies 2015 New York Ethical Surrogacy Conference we focused on teaching the public at large about surrogacy and providing tools to intended parents to ensure that their surrogacy journey is ethical and positive.

As part of our mission to promote ethical surrogacy practices that benefits all involved parties, Men Having Babies   is in the process of devising a framework for ethical surrogacy principles, protocols and best practices for intended parents. The latest version drafted by our Board and our Surrogates Advisory Board is available on menhavingbabies.org. The document is already available in English, French and Hebrew, and we are collaborating with several community organizations to translate this document to additional languages and collect feedback. Selected issues from this framework will also be brought up for discussion and public comments at our upcoming conferences.

Men Having Babies (“MHB”) is an independent nonprofit organization dedicated to providing gay biological fathers and fathers-to-be with educational and financial support. We offer the following framework of ethical guidelines and best practices as part of our goal to promote surrogacy practices that minimize the risks and maximize the benefits to all involved. The framework comprises of three levels: a Statement of Principles, Baseline Protocols for Providers, and Recommended Best Practices for intended parents.

in Ethics / Legal / Legislation / Surrogacy / Videos  by Anthony Brown 0 comments

What Garon & Jamie did when Adoption Fell Apart

WHAT GARON AND JAMIE DID WHEN THEIR ADOPTION FELL THROUGH

Husbands Garon Wade and Jamie Suriano had hoped to make their 3-year-old son Matteo a big brother this year. But after the birth mother chose to keep the baby, the couple had to learn how to accept the emotional costs that come with adoption.

Garon Wade grew up knowing he wanted to be a dad. What’s more, he knew he wanted to be an adoptive dad.

“Even before I recognized that I was gay, I always knew that I wanted to be a parent,” he said. “And I always wanted to adopt. I’m adopted, my sister is adopted, my father is adopted. So when it came to my family, adopting a child wasn’t a result of me being gay. That was a result me being adopted, too, and thinking what an amazing experience it is to give somebody a parent.”

Both men believed Matteo would be their only child, but after two years of raising one son they realized they wanted to grow their family.

“We originally thought when we adopted Matteo that we were only going to have one kid,” Suriano said. “Right around his second birthday, we started talking about having another and thought it would be good for him to have a brother or sister. You see how much fun they are and how much happiness you get out of having a kid.”

Wade and Suriano went back to the same agency they used for Matteo. They followed all the right steps — updated their home study, worked with their social worker and attorney. Finally, the call came through. They would be bringing home a little girl.

Matteo was so close to meeting his baby sister — until that second call came. The birth mother had decided to keep the baby.

“Once you get that call, once someone says you have a child, your heart just goes there,” Wade said. “When you get that second call, it’s such a disappointment. I can remember with Matteo saying, ‘OK, we’ll take this baby, we’ll take care of him the best we can.’ And a part of you wants to remain unattached because there’s the possibility that something could happen.

“That doesn’t work, though, with a child. It’s hard to go halfway.”

The couple lost this chance at a daughter, but both men have learned how to accept the risks of adoption.

Click here to read the entire article.

December 21, 2015 by Michael Lambert via gayswithkids.com

in Adoption / Family Stories / Legal / Personal Stories  by Anthony Brown 0 comments