Financial Planning is important for anyone. For gay and lesbian partners it can be crucial. For same sex partnerships, properfinancial planning can help ensure that you and your loved ones are properly protected. As a Financial Consultant, my goal. is to meet your needs in a relationship based on trust and professionalism, working closely with your attorney or CPA to develop a strategy based on your unique situation and objectives. Call me for a free consultation. Mitchell Rosengarten Financial Consultant (802) 775-4371 or (800) 628-2132 90 Merchants Row Rutland, VT 05701 THIS IS WHO WE ARE. THIS IS HOW WE EARN IT."' SMITI-IBARNEY _‘ citlqroufil‘ Smith Barney does not offer tax or legal advice Please consultyour taxllegal advisor for such guidance. @2004 Citigroup Global Markets Inc Member SIPC. Srrith Barney is a division and service mark of Citigroup Global Markets Inc and it affiliatesand is used and registered throughout the world. CITIGROUP and the Umbrella Device are trademarks and service marks of Clticorp or its affiliates and are used and registered throughout the world. THIS ISWHO WE ARE. THIS IS HOW WE EARN IT is a savice mark of Citlgroup Global Markets lnc Tafiubus; fuzz, ‘Z/qlize == Cmzsz I: I The is Gr Barre ‘ ToilFree: 863325242 cu‘ {866~deckchoir) 476 0808 #3 In Cruising, Notionwid , Civi Disso Iution Out-of-Staters Find Breaking Up a Civil Union is Hard to Do - BY JENN BAUDREAU partner traveled to Vermont from their home state of New York to make a public commitment to one another by entering into a civil union. Unfortunately, three years later their relationship ended. Whereas the process of obtaining the civil union took less than half an hour — as Welthy is quickly finding out — dissolving it is not nearly so easy. ' In order to dissolve a Vermont civil union in Vermont, one or both partners need to be res- idents, the same requirement as for filing for divorce in a marriage. With 85 percent of civil unions going to out—of-state couples, how- ever, that residency requirement poses a problem. Since — unlike marriage — civil unions are a new institution, there is little in the way of case law to support someone . like Welthy. That most states do not recognize civil unions as an institution only increases the diffi- culty. As Welthy says, “It’s like asking New York to dissolve some- thing it doesn’t believe exists.” There has been some encouraging news on this front. Last month the Iowa Supreme Court decided not to interfere with a ruling by a lower court to dis- solve a lesbian couple’s civil union. As uplifting as that news is, however, dissolving a civil union this way is time-consuming and costly, and not everyone iswilling to be thrown into the legal spot- light. In 2001 Karen Welthy and her Welthy doesn’t feel that taking her case to court is a viable option for her at this time. “It would be groundbreaking - and very expensive - for me or any other ‘first’ person to try to get a civil union dissolved [in New York]. My lawyer said that she would love to take the case because it is interesting and brand new, but there are no guarantees that I would get anywhere with a judge in New Yor .” At the moment, Welthy feels her only real choice is to pay somebody rent here in Vermont, while continuing to live and work in New York. That way, six months down the line she can file for the dissolution, and six months after that she can be granted it. Needless to say, she considers this a frustrat- ing, expensive, and time-consum- ing process. ‘ v Beth Robinson, an attor- ney at Langrock -Sperry & Wool and lead lawyer in Baker viiState, receives “dozens and dozens” of calls about civil union dissolution, many referred by other lawyers. She believes that civil union disso- Iution is part of a broader problem: " civil unions are not marriage. “The question of how civil unions are treated in other states for the pur- pose of dissolution, or other bene- tional issues and plugged into the gay and lesbian rights issues involved. Second, consider relocat- ing to a state that would dissolve the union. Third, take all the legal steps possible to mitigate the impact of an undissolved civil union, beginning with negotiating a separation agreement. To ensure the agreement has legal standing within the partners’ state of resi- dence, they should consult ‘a lawyer. Welthy, for one, feels frustrated by the legal difficulties surrounding her civil union. “It has become a big hassle and it offers me no rights in my home state any- way,” she says. But, she adds, “I found the civil union to be emo- tionally fulfilling. It was a good experience to have someone in the legal system validate our relation- ship. I also thought if I ever had any trouble, I could move to Vermont where my relationship was protected. So in that regard, it was a positive thing.” Robinson is also quick to‘ point out that the experience for “'l11e problem for civil union couples from out of state is with their home state, not with Vermon ” Beth Robinson fits for that matter, raises some challenging legal questions,” Robinson says. “We have centuries of case law dealing with how states should treat valid marriages from other states — case law that we could plug into much more easily if. we had full equality, i.e. mar- riage, for same-sex couples in I Vermont.” However, she elaborates in a later conversation, “The prob- lem for civil union couples from out of state is with their home state, not with Vermont. There might be a temptation [for Ver- mont] to help, to make it easier to dissolve a civil union by eliminat- ing the residency requirement. In 2002, opponents to civil unions attempted that. We argued against that, because it chips away at mar- riage parity.” There are also steps that separating civil union partners can take to protect themselves while waiting for the legal picture to become clearer, Robinson says. First, get at lawyer who is both knowledgeable about the jurisdic- many out-of-staters with civil - unions has been far from negative. “A New York trial court allowed a surviving civil union partner to pursue a wrongful death claim based on the death of his civil union spouse. I’ve spoken to out- of-staters who have been able to obtain health‘ insurance, and dis- ability insurance for their partners through their employers on the basis of their Vermont civil unions. I even talked to someone in Michigan who was able to register for a family membership to the local museum on the basis of the civil union.” Clearly the legal confu- sion and questions raised by civil unions are far from over, but there is hope. As Robinson points out, these civil union issues will ‘ become moot if we can achieve equality by replacing civil unions with true marriage.V Jenn Baudreau is a coffee barista, a runner. and a recent arrival in Vermont. She li\'c.v in Burl1'r1gr0n.