Employment Law Monthly - July 2013

Supreme Court Strikes Down Defense of Marriage Act, Creating New Rights For Same-Sex Spouses and New Obligations for Employers

By Raquel S. Lord

In the much-anticipated, landmark ruling on June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court struck down as unconstitutional a portion of the Defense of Marriage Act that defined marriage under federal law as between an opposite-sex couple. Though the Court's decision in many ways creates more questions than answers, employers should understand the farreaching implications in the realms of employee benefits, leave, and discrimination issues, with particular complications for multi-state employers.