Divorce mediation in California is poised to enter new territory as more and more states across the United States change their marriage laws to allow same-sex marriages.  Thanks to the full faith and credit clause of the U.S. Constitution, states are required to legally recognized marriages contracted in other states, even when those marriages conflict with their own state laws.  Some states, however, are currently refusing to honor those marriages, leaving couples in a kind of legal limbo; should they wish to divorce, it may not be possible without returning to the state that performed the marriage.  In some cases, this requires establishing residency in that state.

Since this point of constitutional law has yet to be settled once and for all by the U.S. Supreme Court, many same-sex marriages are beginning to proliferate in states such as California, which has banned the practice.  Of course, California did briefly allow same-sex marriages to exist.  Proposition 8, a state initiative, erased by ballot what the legislature and courts had allowed.  During that small window of time, however, thousands of same sex marriages were finalized.

Divorce Mediation in California Includes Same-Sex Couples

Because gay marriage was legal for a short time in California, divorce mediation and child custody mediation attorneys are now sometimes called upon to help those couples dissolve their marriages.