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| Jason Mettley, Esquire jm@muslaw.com |
On June 26, 2013, the Supreme Court ruled that Section 3 of the
1996 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defined marriage as a legal union
between one man and one woman, was unconstitutional.
The case that prompted the ruling, United States v. Windsor,
questioned whether legally married same-sex couples are entitled to the same
federal tax benefits as opposite sex couples. The case opened the door for
lawfully married same-sex couples to take advantage of more than 1,100 federal
benefits already afforded to heterosexual married couples.
For many employers, the ruling created uncertainty with respect
to employee benefit administration. Section 2 of DOMA, which allows a state to
refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed under the laws of other states,
was not addressed by the Supreme Court and still stands as law. Accordingly,
employers in states like Pennsylvania, which does not recognize same sex
marriages, were left wondering how to administer benefits to employees in a same
sex marriage lawfully formed in another state.
Please click here to read the full article from Western
Pennsylvania Healthcare News.
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