Monday, March 17, 2014

South Carolina Divorce Action Challenges Ban On Same-Sex Marriage

A suit filed last week in Family Court in Greenville, South Carolina could be the vehicle for testing the constitutionality of South Carolina's ban on same-sex marriage. According to WYFF News, Cathy Swicegood is seeking a divorce from her same-sex partner of 13 years, claiming that the pair should be treated as married under South Carolina's statute that recognizes common law marriages entered prior to 2011. (Background.) In order to succeed, Swicegood will need the court to declare that South Carolina laws treating same-sex marriages as void are unconstitutional. [Thanks to Alliance Alert for the lead.]