In recent weeks, immigration and civil rights advocates were given reason to be guardedly hopeful about the Obama administration’s policy on same-sex marriage and immigration. On Feb. 23, 2011, Attorney General Eric Holder announced that Department of Justice attorneys would no longer defend Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA)—which, inter alia, prohibits the U.S. government from recognizing same-sex marriages for any federal purpose—in lawsuits challenging whether the act is constitutional.1 Later, the attorney general took the extraordinary step of halting the deportation of the same-sex civil partner of a U.S. citizen and remanding the case to the Board of Immigration Appeals for determinations on the constitutionality of DOMA and its impact on immigration benefits and relief from deportation.2
Though U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS) must still enforce DOMA—and thus will not approve affirmative immigration petitions filed on behalf of foreign same-sex partners—the attorney general’s move is an encouraging, if limited, sign of the administration’s support for the recognition of immigration benefits for these partners.
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law are third party online distributors of the broad collection of current and archived versions of ALM's legal news publications. LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law customers are able to access and use ALM's content, including content from the National Law Journal, The American Lawyer, Legaltech News, The New York Law Journal, and Corporate Counsel, as well as other sources of legal information.
For questions call 1-877-256-2472 or contact us at [email protected]
