Last summer I examined some of the problems with Federal DOMA (the so-called "defense" of marriage act) on our firm's other blog. At the time, I expressed my concern that couples that were legally married were unable to obtain equal treatment in the bankruptcy courts because, pursuant to the Federal DOMA law, legally married same-sex couples are denied the protections of marriage under Federal law. Recently, a California bankruptcy court allowed a same-sex couple to proceed with a joint bankruptcy petition. In the case (In re Ziviello-Howell, No 11-22706 (N.D. Cal)), Judge Michael S. McManus denied a motion by the United States Trustee to dismiss the case alleging that the joint petition was improper and unauthorized because DOMA limits the definition of the term "spouse" as defined to a person of the opposite sex. The Court reasoned in part that “[w]hether or not the debtors are spouses under DOMA, because they are legally married, because their assets and liabilities belong to their community, and because it will not make any practical difference to anyone if this case proceeds as one or two cases, the court concludes that there is no cause for dismissal of this joint case.” Whether this case is appealed is left to the Justice Department, but this one case does not change the law, or the lay of the land.
If you are experiencing financial difficultly you should meet with a qualified bankruptcy attorney sooner rather than later to properly plan the best course of action to protect your assets from creditors. To schedule a free consultation with an experienced bankruptcy attorney, call the Law Offices of James Wingfield at 508-797-0200 or visit the contact page on our website.
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