Financial planners see affluent gay and lesbian clients as an important growth market. But the LGBT community faces unique financial planning challenges – and the ground is shifting rapidly, especially where same-sex couples are concerned. A growing number of states recognize same sex marriage and civil unions, but the federal Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) [...] [...more]
Gay rights took a big stride forward in this week’s elections, with voters in four states affirming the right of same-sex couples to marry. But here’s an issue in the LGBT community that continues to fly under the radar: what happens to LGBT Americans when they get old? “Our community has been focused for years [...] [...more]
June is Gay Pride Month in the United States. And you can tell the times they are a changing when U.S. Secretary of Defense Leon Panetta salutes the event by taping a video personally thanking gay members of the military for their service. But when it comes to retirement security, LGBT Americans still have a [...] [...more]
When President Obama embraced same-sex marriage last week, he tried to frame it as an issue for the states to resolve. But federal laws and policies are very much front and center in the battle for a level financial playing field for lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) Americans – especially seniors. And the Obama [...] [...more]
This week’s federal appeals court decision throwing out California’s Proposition 8 adds considerable weight to the argument that the federal Defense of Marriage Act violates the U.S. Constitution. While DOMA’s legal fate is far from sealed, this much is clear: the law results in differential treatment of same-sex married couples under federal law in hundreds [...] [...more]
