I was asked to speak about Financial Empowerment for Men at the Infinity Diamond Club’s We are One conference in Durham. While a lot of the discussion focused on different kinds of finances, we also laid out the basics of a good life and estate plan. As we went through different topics, I was struck by the big misconceptions out there regarding finances and what we are “supposed to do” for retirement and, eventually, inheritance.
Unfortunately it happens too often. About a week ago, someone called our office about having some estate planning done for him and his partner, and he had heard about how our firm has a concentration in helping domestic partners with their plans. He told us he was impressed with our involvement in the Human Rights Campaign and that I lead the National Institute for Domestic Partner Estate Planning, and that he really needed our help to get documents in place for him and his partner. He also said that they had talked about planning for years, but didn’t call until now, but things needed to be done right away.
The Human Rights Campaign and state equality groups, legislators and protestors, and businesses and individuals have struggled to build a country of equality that includes members of the LGBT community. But constructing this home big enough to include all of us has taken a lot of time. And like the Winchester House, every twisting and turning staircase can lead to dead ends, locked doors, and enough construction that it seems the work will never end. Court decisions, legislative edicts, and lobbying at all levels of government have become the foundation of this huge house we are building. What seems to be lost in constructing protests, electing equality architects to public office, and fighting a homophobic zoning board is that each partner can build their own houses of equality with tools already available to them.
Just the other day, the U.S, Supreme Court refused to “grant certiorari” in a case that where the City Council refused to put the issue of gay marriage on the ballot in the District of Columbia since the D.C. Human Rights Act forbids ballot initiatives that have the affect of authorizing discrimination under the Act. The D.C. Court of Appeals decision last July upheld the District Council’s right to reject such a ballot. The reaction from pro-equality groups was jubilant and widespread. After all it was a victory for gay marriage from the U.S. Supreme Court.
A good afternoon to everyone! I wanted to let you know between Kathy and I we are in full gear preparing for the Human Rights Campaign Gala on February 26, 2011 at the Raleigh Convention Center. I have just taken over the responsibility of finding and supporting table captains whose role it is to find 9 other people to purchase tickets and join them at their table. For those who do not know, The Human Rights Campaign is the largest and most visible group pushing for LGBT equality at the federal level.
The recent elections have many in the LGBT community nervous about the prospects of national equality coming any time soon. The Obama administration has promised big but delivered moderate results. Some would even say the results were terrible mainly because there were specific opportunities to force equality, such as the repeal of Don’t Ask, Don’t [...]
As of the time of this writing, DADT is unconstitutional, meaning gay service members can be open about their sexual orientation. This is based on a federal judge issuing an injunction prohibiting the military from enforcing the policy, and the judge’s ruling that DADT had no reasonable relation to military readiness. In fact, Federal Judge Virginia Phillips, after hearing the case, ruled that DADT actually hurt military readiness by taking key personnel out of a military unit and leaving them shorthanded, and testimony from the unit showed that they did not care about the person’s orientation. Of course, this ruling is being appealed, and while military recruiters are now able to enlist openly gay personnel, they have to warn them that DADT may be reinstated.
With the pending sunset of the temporary estate tax repeal, married couples are turning their attention to the potential impact on their families and loved ones should they pass on. The estate tax limits plummet to $1 million per person whereas two years ago it was $2 million per person, and last year it was $3.5 million. The number of potential taxable estates jumps dramatically at $ 1 million, the taxable rate jumps to 55%,
A Federal Court Judge has declared the military’s “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” policy unconstitutional. While I might usually reserve a story like this for the domestic partner planning segment, it actually has more far reaching effects than just the rights of LGBT members to serve openly in the U.S. Armed Forces. On September 9, U.S. [...]
One of the items in the news these past few weeks is the new anti-bullying law that finally passed in New York. It was first presented in 2002, passed the Assembly nine times before finally being passed in the state Senate as well, and on September 8 was signed by New York Governor David Patterson. [...]