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Media Contacts

Tom Warnke – Media Relations Director

213-841-4503
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Samy Nemir – Public Information Officer

202-672-4877
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Jonathan Adams - Communications Director

646-752-3251
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Press Releases

Read our latest news or search by issue area.

Lambda Legal Celebrates Senate Vote and Urges Maryland House to Pass Marriage Equality Bill

(New York, February 25, 2011)- Today, on the heels of the Senate passage of the Civil Marriage Protection Act, Lambda Legal attorney Susan Sommer will testify before the Maryland House Judiciary Committee in support of the bill, which would allow same-sex couples to marry within the state.

Shift in DOMA Policy Prompts Questions from Judge in Lambda Legal's <em>Golinski v. OPM</em>

A federal judge has requested the U.S. Department of Justice to explain how it plans to defend denying spousal health benefits to a lesbian federal employee, following an announcement yesterday by the Obama administration that it believes the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) is unconstitutional. U.S. District Judge Jeffrey White has given government attorneys until Monday, February 28, to respond.

Lambda Legal Applauds DOJ Announcement that it Will No Longer Defend "Defense of Marriage Act"

(New York, February 23, 2011) — After the Department of Justice announced that it will no longer defend the so-called "Defense of Marriage Act" in court, Lambda Legal issued the following statement from Legal Director Jon Davidson:

Lambda Legal and ACLU Applaud Governor's Signing of Hawai`i Civil Union Bill

Lambda Legal and the American Civil Liberties Union of Hawai`i (ACLU) applaud Hawai`i Governor Neil Abercrombie's signing of SB232, which establishes civil unions for same-sex and different-sex couples in Hawai`i. The Hawai`i Senate approved the bill in an 18-5 vote on February 16. The new law takes effect on January 1, 2012.

Lambda Legal Calls On California Supreme Court to Confirm Prop 8 Proponents Cannot Press Appeal

(San Francisco, February 16, 2011) — Today the California Supreme Court agreed to answer a question by the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals on whether or not supporters of a California ballot measure can continue litigation about that measure’s constitutionality when state officials decide against doing so. A three-judge panel of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals certified the question in the Prop 8 case, Perry v. Schwarzenegger, on January 4. In response to today’s announcement, Marriage Project Director Jennifer C.

Lambda Legal Applauds Final Legislative Approval of Hawai`i Civil Union Bill

(Honolulu, February 16, 2011) — Lambda Legal reacted with pleasure to the final legislative approval today of SB 232, a bill establishing civil unions for Hawai`i couples. Voting 18-5, the Hawai`i Senate accepted amendments made before the House passed the bill last Friday, February 11, 2011 by a 31-19 vote.

The bill originated in the Senate, which approved it on January 28, 2011 by a 19-6 margin. It now goes to Governor Abercrombie, who not only has promised to sign it but made it a campaign issue last year. Once enacted, the new law will take effect on January 1, 2012.

Lambda Legal Argues before U.S. Ninth Circuit to Protect Domestic Partner Benefits for Gay and Lesbian Arizona State Employees

The state of Arizona has no valid reason for placing its lesbian and gay employees on a lower pay scale than heterosexuals, Lambda Legal today told a three-judge panel of the U.S. Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals. The oral arguments were part of a case to block a law stripping domestic partner benefits from gay and lesbian state employees.

Maryland Will Issue Birth Certificates Naming Two Married Moms as Parents: Lambda Legal Applauds New Protection for Children

The Maryland Department of Health and Mental Hygiene issued a letter to state birth registrars announcing a procedure change allowing a woman to be named as a parent on the Maryland birth certificate of the child born to her same-sex married spouse, without the necessity of a court order. Lambda Legal applauds this advance for Maryland children.

Lambda Legal Represents Youth Organizations in Federal Lawsuit Brought by Former Eastern Michigan University Counseling Student

Today, in the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit, Lambda Legal filed a friend-of-the-court brief on behalf of Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays (PFLAG), Gay, Lesbian and Straight Education Network (GLSEN), and the Detroit-based organizations Affirmations and Ruth Ellis Center in a case involving a counseling student dismissed from Eastern Michigan University (EMU) for violating ethics related to treatment of LGBT patients.

Lambda Legal Urges Maryland Senate to Pass Marriage Equality Bill

Today Lambda Legal's Director of Constitutional Litigation, Susan Sommer, will testify before the Maryland Senate Judicial Proceedings Committee in support of Senate Bill 116, the Religious Freedom and Civil Marriage Protection Act, which would allow same-sex couples to marry.

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