While the United States Supreme Court legalized gay marriage across the country recently in 2015, many states have recognized this union in some form for many more years.  This allowed different jurisdictions to recognize a relationship in one area but not in another area.  While this has changed, the LGBT community still faces a number of complex family law issues.

In some cases, court clerks and religious leaders have refused to grant marriages to same-sex couples or provide them with a marriage certificate.  Some jurisdictions have established local ordinances to provide specific punishments to individuals who refuse to obey the law.  New legislation is also being considered to help tackle these issues.

Another legal issue plaguing the LGBT community is regarding their parental rights.  Since same-sex couples cannot have children in the traditional sense, many couples make alternative arrangements.  This often results in one parent being the known, biological parent.  Some states still have laws on the books that only allow a child to have one natural father and one natural mother, potentially leaving the other parent with no rights.

For many years, LGBT individuals cohabited without having legal recognition of their relationship status.  Many still continue to live together without being married.  In the event that the relationship dissolves, LGBT individuals may find that their property is at risk as courts are generally unwilling to use divorce processes in determining the identity of a couple’s property and its owner.

Rather than keeping themselves in these precarious legal positions, many LGBT individuals seek the assistance of lawyers.  These types of issues can often be resolved through mediation in which the parties leave the mediation session with an enforceable agreement.  Mediation focuses on providing the parties with an opportunity to cooperate and customize an agreement that is matched to their particular needs.