A Legal Guide for Lesbian and Gay... | Buy

Summary

This practical guide is updated with the latest legal information and legislation that will help you and your same-sex partner protect and exercise your rights, and make sound decisions as a couple. A Legal Guide for Lesbian & Gay Couplescovers these important subjects, and many more: . making practical decisions about living together . planning for medical emergencies -- making medical decisions for one another and taking care of each other's finances when one partner is incapacitated . domestic partner benefits and how to obtain them . buying property together . providing for each other upon death . practical and legal aspects of having and raising children . marriage laws for all 50 states This edition of A Legal Guide for Lesbian & Gay Couplesis updated to provide the latest information on same-sex marriage, civil unions and domestic partnerships in the U.S., Canada and around the world, as well as all the recent developments in same-sex partnership law. Plus, create essential legal documents using the step-by-step instructions included with downloadable forms.

Author Biography

Frederick Hertz is a practicing attorney and the author of Making It Legal: Same-Sex Marriage, Domestic Partnerships Civil Unions. Emily Doskow, a Nolo editor and a practicing attorney/mediator, is the author of Nolo's Essential Guide to Divorce and Coauthor of Making It Legal: A Guide to Same-Sex Marriage, Domestic Partnerships Civil Unions.

Your LGBT Family Companion	p. 1
How We See Our Relationships	p. 3
How This Book Can Help	p. 4
Using the Forms in This Book	p. 6
Defining Family: Basics of Marriage, Domestic Partnership, and More	p. 7
Defining Family	p. 9
Domestic Partnership	p. 15
Employee Benefits for Domestic Partners	p. 17
Other Benefits	p. 20
Marriage and Marriage-Like Relationships in the United States: An Overview	p. 21
Can You Get Married?	p. 23
Creating Marriage-Like Relationships by Contract	p. 27
Ending a Relationship	p. 31
Keeping Up With Legal Changes	p. 32
Marriage and Marriage-Equivalent Relationships	p. 33
Same-Sex Marriage in the Marriage Equality States	p. 37
Marriage Equivalent: California's Domestic Partnership Law	p. 41
Other Marriage-Equivalent Laws	p. 48
Pre- and Postpartnership Agreements	p. 52
Marriage Lite: Relationship Recognition in Wisconsin, Colorado, and Maine	p. 53
Is Marriage (or Its Equivalent) Right for You?	p. 55
Money, Insurance, Name Changes, and Immigration Issues	p. 59
Cash and Credit	p. 60
Insurance	p. 70
Name Changes	p. 74
Foreign Lovers: Visits and Immigration	p. 77
Renting a Home Together	p. 85
If a Landlord Discriminates Against You	p. 86
Sharing a Rental	p. 88
Sharing One Partner's Rented Home	p. 92
Renter's Insurance	p. 96
Moving On	p. 97
Public Benefits and Living Together	p. 98
I'm Mom, She's Mommy(or I'm Daddy, He's Papa)	p. 101
Legal Parents and the Second-Parent Trap	p. 102
Having a Child	p. 121
Adopting a Child	p. 138
Foster Parenting	p. 149
Becoming a Guardian	p. 153
Agreements With Teenagers	p. 158
Medical and Financial Matters: Delegating Authority	p. 161
Health Care Decisions	p. 164
Physician-Assisted Suicide	p. 176
Burial and Body Disposition	p. 177
Estate Planning Note	p. 180
Durable Power of Attorney for Finances	p. 181
Looking Ahead: Estate Planning	p. 197
Death and Living Together Contracts	p. 199
Wills	p. 200
Estate Planning Beyond a Will	p. 227
Living Together Contracts for Lesbian and Gay a Couples	p. 247
Living Together Contracts Are Legal	p. 250
When You Need a Living Together Contract	p. 252
What to Include in a Living Together Contract	p. 253
Sample Living Together Contracts	p. 260
Contracts for Jointly Acquired Items	p. 265
Modifying Your Agreement	p. 285
Beware the Tax Man!	p. 285
Buying a Home Together (and Other Real Estate Ventures)	p. 287
Finding a House	p. 289
How Much House Can You Afford?	p. 292
Proceeding With Your Purchase	p. 300
Taking Title to Your New Home	p. 305
Contracts for Home Purchase and Ownership	p. 309
Going Separate Ways: Issues at the End of a Relationship	p. 335
Breaking Up: An Overview	p. 336
The Separation Process: What to Do	p. 338
Getting to Yes: How to Work Toward Resolution	p. 343
Ideas for Solving Some Common Problems	p. 353
Breaking Up When There's No Legal Relationship	p. 371
Dissolving a Same-Sex Marriage	p. 373
Dissolving a Straight Marriage	p. 387
Domestic Violence in Same-Sex Relationships	p. 392
Help Beyond the Book	p. 393
Hiring a Lawyer	p. 394
Doing Your Own Legal Research	p. 398
Legal Organizations	p. 403
A Using the Interactive Forms	p. 407
Editing RTFs	p. 408
List of Forms	p. 409
Index	p. 411
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Supplemental Materials

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