On May 1, 2013 civil unions became legal in Colorado.
A civil union establishes a legal relationship between two people in Colorado,
much like a marriage. Many wonder what this means, and what the
differences are, if any, from a marriage? Civil unions are, for all
intents and purposes, the same as a marriage under Colorado law. Note I
specifically wrote “under Colorado law” because, until the Federal government
recognizes the rights of the LGBT community to marry within its community, they
will not have the same rights as married couples under Federal law. While
this is no doubt confusing, I have outlined the similarities and differences
between civil unions and marriages below:
Similarities
- Marriage and Divorce Laws:
o Divorce
(If you enter into a civil union, then you must divorce as if you entered into
a marriage.)
o Child
custody (children conceived during the civil union are presumed to be the
natural child of both civil union partners)
o Child
support
o Maintenance/alimony
o Property
and debt division
o Prenuptial
agreements
o Adoptions
(A civil union partner may adopt the child of the other partner the same way a
stepparent in a marriage would).
o Common
law marriage
- Health Insurance. Your civil union partner can now be covered under your health insurance policy if your policy is in Colorado.
- Spousal privilege. Under Colorado law, a spouse cannot be forced to testify against you without your permission. This protection applies to civil union partners as well.
- Civil unions, same-sex marriages, domestic partnerships and other same-sex legal unions conducted in other states that recognize the same rights are recognized in Colorado as civil unions.
- Domestic Abuse laws
Differences
- In a marriage, the married partners are called “spouses.” In a civil union, the married partners are called “civil union partners.”
- Income taxes: Those in a civil union cannot file jointly, or even “married filing separately.” To alleviate any confusion, Colorado will not allow civil union partners to file income taxes jointly.
- Property division in divorce. When married couples divorce, the division of assets as part of the divorce (such as dividing a 401(k), transfers of funds from bank accounts, and transfer of home ownership) is exempt from Federal tax. However, because Federal law does not yet recognize civil unions and marriages that are not between a man and a woman, division of property in a civil union divorce may be considered a taxable event. In plain English, this means if you get any property in your divorce, the Feds may tax it as income to you.
- Social Security divorced spouse benefits. If a divorced married couple was married at least 10 years, the lesser-income-earning spouse's social security benefit will be increased to a rate equal to half of the higher-income spouse's benefit amount. Since Federal law does not yet recognize civil unions, civil union partners will not qualify for this.
In short, under Colorado law, those in a civil union are
treated exactly as those in a marriage. However, under Federal law, your
civil union is not yet recognized as a valid union and therefore, is not subject to
the same protections. For more answers on your benefits under Colorado law, contact The Taibo Law Firm to speak with an attorney.
