“... Every day that the State does
not allow same-sex couples to marry, plaintiffs are being harmed, in
violation of the clear directive of Lewis...
Plaintiffs are ineligible for many federal benefits at this moment,
and their right to equal protection under the New Jersey Constitution
should not be delayed until some undeterminable future time. In the
face of an injury of constitutional proportions, the court must act
to ensure the continuing vitality of Lewis...
... Following the Windsor decision of the United States Supreme Court and the subsequent implementation of that decision by several federal agencies, same-sex couples are only afforded the same rights and benefits enjoyed by opposite-sex married couples if they are married. Since New Jersey currently denies marriage to same-sex couples, same-sex civil union partners in New Jersey are ineligible for many federal marital benefits. The parallel legal structures created by the New Jersey Legislature therefore no longer provide same-sex couples with equal access to the rights and benefits enjoyed by married heterosexual couples, violating the mandate of Lewis and the New Jersey Constitution's equal protection guarantee. Under these circumstances, the current inequality visited upon same-sex civil union couples offends the New Jersey Constitution, creates an incomplete set of rights that Lewis sought to prevent, and is not compatible with “a reasonable conception of basic human dignity.”... Any doctrine urging caution in constitutional adjudication is overcome by such a clear denial of equal treatment.
... Following the Windsor decision of the United States Supreme Court and the subsequent implementation of that decision by several federal agencies, same-sex couples are only afforded the same rights and benefits enjoyed by opposite-sex married couples if they are married. Since New Jersey currently denies marriage to same-sex couples, same-sex civil union partners in New Jersey are ineligible for many federal marital benefits. The parallel legal structures created by the New Jersey Legislature therefore no longer provide same-sex couples with equal access to the rights and benefits enjoyed by married heterosexual couples, violating the mandate of Lewis and the New Jersey Constitution's equal protection guarantee. Under these circumstances, the current inequality visited upon same-sex civil union couples offends the New Jersey Constitution, creates an incomplete set of rights that Lewis sought to prevent, and is not compatible with “a reasonable conception of basic human dignity.”... Any doctrine urging caution in constitutional adjudication is overcome by such a clear denial of equal treatment.
Because
plaintiffs, and all same-sex couples in New Jersey, cannot access
many federal marital benefits as partners in civil unions, this court
holds that New Jersey's denial of marriage to same-sex couples now
violates Article 1, Paragraph 1 of the New Jersey Constitution as
interpreted by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Lewis v.
Harris. The equality demanded
by Lewis v. Harris
now requires that same-sex couples in New Jersey be allowed to marry.
As a result, the court will grant plaintiffs' motion for summary
judgment and will order the State to permit any and all same-sex
couples, who otherwise satisfy the requirements for civil marriage,
to marry in New Jersey...
The
ineligibility of same-sex couples for federal benefits is currently
harming same-sex couples in New Jersey in a wide range of contexts:
civil union partners who are federal employees living in New Jersey
are ineligible for marital rights with regard to the federal pension
system, all civil union partners who are employees working for
businesses to which the Family and Medical Leave Act applies may not
rely on its statutory protections for spouses, and civil union
couples may not access the federal tax benefits that married couples
enjoy. And if the trend of federal agencies deeming civil union
partners ineligible for benefits continues, plaintiffs will suffer
even more, while their opposite-sex New Jersey counterparts continue
to receive federal marital benefits for no reason other than the
label places upon their relationships by the State. This unequal
treatment requires that New Jersey extend civil marriage to same-sex
couples to satisfy the equal protection guarantees of the New Jersey
Constitution as interpreted by the New Jersey Supreme Court in Lewis.
Same-sex couples must be allowed to marry in order to obtain equal
protection of the law under the New Jersey Constitution...
…
2. Effective October 21, 2013, Defendants, or such officials of the
State of New Jersey as are empowered to do so, shall permit any and
all same-sex couples, who otherwise satisfy the requirements to enter
into a civil marriage, to marry in New Jersey.”
Judge
Mary C. Jacobson, Superior Court of New Jersey, Mercer County,
September 27, 2013. Decision on Motion for Summary
Judgment, and Order Granting Plaintiffs' Motion for Summary Judgment
and Entering Final Judgment in Favor of Plaintiffs.
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