Section 29.1 Scope of Chapter

• Library: Family Law (2019 Supp)

A. (§29.1) Scope of Chapter

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Significant changes have occurred across the nation since the last publication of this chapter. In the United States Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Obergefell v. Hodges, 135 S. Ct. 2584, 2602–08 (2015), the Court found that the Due Process Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment guarantees the right to marry another person as one of the fundamental liberties protected by the Amendment and that same-sex couples cannot be denied that same right. The Court also found that denying same-sex couples the right to marry violates the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment. Id. at 2602. Not only does the Court’s decision now prevent states from enacting laws that would deny same-sex couples the right to marry, but states must also now recognize same-sex marriages that occurred in other states. Id. at 2604–05, 2608.

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*Mr. Stange received his J.D., 2000, from the University of Missouri-Columbia. He is a founding partner at Stange Law Firm, PC, which is a domestic relations law firm with locations in the Midwest.

**Ms. Wood received her J.D., 2009, from Saint Louis University School of Law. She is a managing partner at Stange Law Firm, PC, which is a domestic relations law firm with locations in the Midwest.

Despite the Supreme Court’s Obergefell decision, many people continue to choose to share resources and living arrangements without assuming the legal obligations or benefits of marriage. Cohabiting partners do not have the same rights as spouses and, thus, these relationships may cost couples rights that are obvious to many and a few rights that may not be immediately apparent:

To hold property as tenants by the entirety

Inheritance of general property and special rights to inherit from Missouri employees

Support and maintenance

Various governmental benefits

Special tax treatment

Statutory property distribution upon death or divorce

The “right of sepulcher” (the right to control disposition of human remains)

Private visits with a partner if residing in the same nursing facility (a right statutorily guaranteed to Missouri spouses)

Informed consent for experimental treatment afforded to lawful spouses

Spousal testimonial privilege in a courtroom—same-sex partners can be compelled to testify

Standing as a wrongful death plaintiff upon a spouse’s death

Spousal benefits for insurance and workers’ compensation and myriad other financial benefit programs

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