Gay couples here (Seattle) given 'marital-like' divorce rights

[Ediacara]

Gay couples here given 'marital-like' divorce rights

By J. Patrick Coolican
Seattle Times staff reporter

Lynn Gormley and Julia Robertson did many things married couples do. They deposited paychecks in a joint bank account, borrowed money and bought a home together.

So when the couple split six years ago, they should have been treated much like a married couple divorcing, even though they're both women, a state Court of Appeals decided last month.

The court said they were in a "marital-like" relationship, which meant the courts could decide a fair settlement of their assets.

Although many other states treat cohabiting unmarried couples as contractual partners, only Washington treats them as "marital-like," affording them more rights when they break up, said professor Julie Shapiro of the Seattle University School of Law.

More at the Seattle Times

[philosophie_en_rose]

1. Good news.

I thought that the meretricious relationship laws already applied to any relationship where people lived as if they were married.

Washington voters are dumb as a stump when it comes to Initiatives, so I don't know whether gay marriage will be blocked or banned here. I know that the city of Seattle has some sort of protections, but I'm glad to know that there is some basis for the gay rights movement.

The only bad part is that there has to be some kind of proof of a "marriage-like" situation.

:shrug: