All Press Releases
Town Council Approves Settlement of Discrimination Complaint
(West Hartford, CT) Last night, the West Hartford Town Council approved in a 5 to 4 vote a settlement of a long-standing discrimination complaint by five unmarried couples who claimed the town treated their families unfairly by withholding a preferential “family” membership rate at the Town’s pool …
Glad Suit Seeking Civil Marriage Rights Backed by National Organizations
(Boston, MA) An unprecedented number of independent organizations from the Boston Bar Association to the Urban League of Eastern Massachusetts, the Greater Boston Civil Rights Coalition and a host of child welfare experts joined the Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) today in filing its …
Exclusion of Boy Scouts Held Constitutional
The United States District Court for the District of Connecticut ruled on Thursday, July 25, that the exclusion of the Boy Scouts of America (BSA) from the Connecticut State Employee Charitable Campaign because of its anti-gay policy in no way violates the Scouts’ constitutional rights. This case, …
GLAD Publishes “Transgender Legal Issues in New England”
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders recently released its new publication, Transgender Legal Issues in New England, a comprehensive outline of the legal protections of transgender people. Through this publication, GLAD aims to raise awareness in the transgender, gay, lesbian and bisexual …
GLAD Appeals Marriage Case For Same-Sex Couples
Today, Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) appealed from a trial court ruling denying marriage licenses to seven same-sex couples who challenged Massachusetts laws that deny them the fundamental right to marry. On May 9, the trial court dismissed the couples’ case despite acknowledging the …
Massachusetts Superior Court Denies Marriage Licenses
Today, the Massachusetts trial court ruled against seven same-sex couples who challenged Massachusetts laws that deny them the fundamental right to marry. The case was filed on behalf of the plaintiff couples in April, 2001, by Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) and was argued before …
Court to Hear Case Seeking Civil Marriage for Same-Sex Couples
New England’s Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) today will argue a case seeking marriage licenses for gay and lesbian couples. The hearing is scheduled for 2 p.m. before Judge Thomas Connolly in Courtroom 4 on the 12th floor of Suffolk Superior Court. The suit was originally filed in …
Sodomy Laws Inapplicable to Private, Consensual Conduct
The Supreme Judicial Court (SJC) today ruled that the state’s centuries-old sodomy laws are inapplicable to private, consensual conduct. In a brief ruling, a unanimous court found that two provisions of Massachusetts law that provide criminal penalties of up to 5 and 20 years for convictions for …
Landmark Legal Victory Ordering Coverage of Liver Transplants For People With HIV
(Boston, MA) In the first legal ruling of its kind in the country, the state Medicaid agency has ordered that Neighborhood Health Plan (NHP) cover the cost of a life-saving liver transplant for a patient who has both HIV and end-stage liver disease resulting from Hepatitis C Virus (HCV). NHP is …
GLAD Will Challenge Anti-Gay Ballot Initiatives In The SJC
Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) today announced it will seek review in the Supreme Judicial Court of Attorney General Thomas Reilly’s decision to certify two anti-gay constitutional ballot initiatives. GLAD contends that the measures, which would prohibit state and local governments …