Dissolving Civil Partnerships May be Streamlined
SACRAMENTO, Calif. (KCBS)_ Same-sex couples who want to call it quits may soon have an easier time getting divorced. Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger is being asked to sign a bill that would streamline the process of dissolving civil marriages and domestic partnerships.
If you are married and want a divorce, you hire an attorney and go to court. If you're in a same-sex marriage, you do the same, but you also must go to court separately to dissolve your domestic partnership.
Legislation by San Francisco assemblywoman Fiona Ma seeks to change the process. Ma says the process can take one to two years longer because now they have to file two different forms and go through different proceedings.
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"AB 2700 is called the Separation Equality Act. It will level the playing field and allow same-sex couples who are also registered domestic partners to dissolve a relationship, get a divorce similar to heterosexual couples," says Ma.
Ma's bill will also allow California to grant divorces to Gay couples married in other states if Governor Schwarzenegger signs it when it reaches his desk on Monday.
