By Julia Frey.
The U.S. Supreme Court recently issued a decision in Obergefell vs. Hodges which held that States cannot keep same-sex couples from obtaining a license to marry and must recognize same-sex marriages from other states. The law of the land is that same-sex couples can legally marry and be entitled to the protections, rights and obligations of any other lawfully wedded couple. However, will this ruling result in same-sex couples being required to marry in order to keep benefits? Many employers have provided for domestic partner benefits in the past, when same-sex marriages were not legal. Now that same-sex marriage is permitted, will companies rescind domestic partner benefits and replace it with spousal rights? Some large companies have already begun phasing out domestic partner benefits for same-sex partners, which means that one would have to marry to keep those benefits. If you currently have domestic partner benefits you should check with your employer and see whether any changes are anticipated to those benefits.
