Family Law

New Mexico attorney general files brief saying gay marriage ban is unconstitutional

New Mexico Attorney General Gary King told the state supreme court on Monday that a ban on gay marriage violates state constitutional guarantees of equal protection. King said the justices should decline to rule, however, because a challenge wasn’t properly before the court, the Associated Press reports. The suit by…

Jul 23, 2013 2:46 PM CDT

Client who lost $6M to pin-up ex-wife sues lawyer for advising him to put money in wife’s name

Facing a $2 million clawback suit by the bankruptcy trustee in the Bernard Madoff case, an Atlanta entrepreneur says, he sought advice from the New York office of Becker & Poliakoff. They referred him to asset protection specialist Richard Cahan in the firm’s Miami, Fla., office, alleges now-former client James…

Jul 17, 2013 9:20 PM CDT

California high court refuses to stop gay weddings

California’s supreme court on Monday declined to stop gay marriages from continuing while it considers a bid to revive Proposition 8. ProtectMarriage, the organization sponsoring the 2008 anti-gay marriage ballot measure, had asked the court to bar the issuing of marriage licenses to same-sex couples while it appeals a federal…

Jul 15, 2013 9:55 PM CDT

‘Collaborative divorce’ lawyer shot her husband, then killed herself, authorities say

A Texas matrimonial lawyer who specialized in “collaborative divorce” is accused of shooting her estranged husband Tuesday night outside their Tarrant County home. She then apparently committed suicide a short time later. Brandon Spencer, an off-duty Irving police officer, was shot twice but survived. Authorities said attorney Tiffany Spencer, 41,…

Jul 11, 2013 2:24 PM CDT

Should photos of children with tigers, bears and other circus animals be banned?

Having a child’s photograph taken next to a circus animal such as a lion, tiger or bear might seem like such an inherently bad idea that no parent would even consider it, let alone encourage a fearful son or daughter to sit down with the creature for a picture. Yet…

Jul 11, 2013 1:20 PM CDT

DOMA ruling may benefit gays seeking divorces

The U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling striking down a law denying federal benefits to same-sex married couples may also benefit gays seeking a divorce. The court struck down the Defense of Marriage Act in the case of Edith Windsor, who had to pay an estate tax of about $360,000 because her…

Jul 3, 2013 1:23 PM CDT

Woman charged along with husband in prosecutor slayings seeks a divorce

A woman indicted along with her husband in the slayings of two Texas prosecutors is seeking a divorce. Former Justice of the Peace Eric Lyle Williams and his wife, Kim Lene Williams, were indicted last week on charges of capital murder in the deaths of Kaufman County District Attorney Mike…

Jul 2, 2013 11:15 AM CDT

Slain woman’s family alleges AA meetings point ‘financial, sexual, and violent predators’ to victims

Updated: It’s no secret that Alcoholics Anonymous attracts troubled individuals–and has helped many turn their lives around. But the nonprofit organization known for its 12-step program also attracts some who find it a convenient place to meet targets for a so-called “13th step”–exploiting troubled women sexually and financially, claims a…

Jun 27, 2013 5:50 PM CDT

Gays who want to marry in California may have to wait for 25 days or more

June 27 • Scalia predicts the future, once again, in gay-marriage dissent • Gays who want to marry in California may have to wait for 25 days or more • You won’t see these words in Kennedy’s DOMA decision June 26 • SCOTUS standing ruling has effect of allowing gay…

Jun 27, 2013 2:05 PM CDT

Scalia predicts the future, once again, in gay-marriage dissent

Ten years ago Wednesday, Justice Antonin Scalia warned in Lawrence v. Texas that the Supreme Court majority had created “a massive disruption of the current social order” by striking down a Texas law barring sodomy. “State laws against bigamy, same-sex marriage, adult incest, prostitution, masturbation, adultery, fornication, bestiality, and obscenity…

Jun 27, 2013 12:32 PM CDT

You won’t see these words in Kennedy’s DOMA decision

June 27 • Scalia predicts the future, once again, in gay-marriage dissent • Gays who want to marry in California may have to wait for 25 days or more • You won’t see these words in Kennedy’s DOMA decision June 26 • SCOTUS standing ruling has effect of allowing gay…

Jun 27, 2013 10:50 AM CDT

SCOTUS standing ruling has effect of allowing gay marriage in California

The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled that supporters of a ban on gay marriage in California did not have standing to appeal a ruling adverse to their ideological interests. The 5-4 decision (PDF) leaves intact a ruling allowing gay marriages in California. It does not affect other states. Chief Justice…

Jun 26, 2013 2:35 PM CDT

SCOTUS strikes down DOMA, which banned federal benefits to married gay couples

The U.S. Supreme Court has struck down the Defense of Marriage Act that bans federal benefits to same-sex married couples. Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote the majority opinion (PDF) finding an equal protection violation under the Fifth Amendment. “DOMA singles out a class of persons deemed by a state entitled…

Jun 26, 2013 2:10 PM CDT

SCOTUS sides with adoptive couple, says Indian Child Welfare Act doesn’t apply

In a bitter custody dispute between a South Carolina adoptive couple and a child’s Native American birth father, the U.S. Supreme Court has sided with the adoptive parents. In Justice Samuel Alito’s majority opinion (PDF), he states that the Indian Child Welfare Act, which was enacted to prevent the “wholesale…

Jun 25, 2013 6:45 PM CDT

Nonprofit housing program helps struggling moms regain custody of their children

A nonprofit housing program being operated on a shoestring budget in Las Vegas is helping struggling moms regain custody of their children and could be a model for similar efforts elsewhere. For only $300 a month, which can be covered out of welfare benefits, women who often have just been…

Jun 25, 2013 4:45 PM CDT