With the historic 2004 decision of Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same sex marriage.  While Massachusetts is continuing to refine its laws to provide equal protection for same sex couples in accordance with the decision, both federal law and the laws of most other states do not recognize same sex marriages.

In addition, many couples in a same sex relationship chose not to marry for a myriad of reasons, but still wish to provide for the other in the event of disability or death.

For both married and unmarried same sex couples, a well-crafted estate plan provides enormous protection for the couple's goals and relationship.  Estate planning involves rights to financial assets and access to medical information, both of which involve a complex mix of federal and state law.  It is crucial, therefore, for same sex couples (both married and unmarried) to develop estate plans that recognize the conflicting legal rights, responsibilities, and roadblocks.

• Trusts which designate the other partner as the trustee in charge of the couple's assets in the event of disability or death;
• A distribution plan to ensure our client's assets are distributed according to their wishes, and not the mandates of state or federal law;
• Tax planning for same sex couples with estates in excess of $1 million to avoid death taxes.  Our federal tax system provides death tax relief for traditional married couples which is not available for non-traditional couples.  We continually research, attend seminars, and seek out the estate planning techniques that are legally available to same sex couples in order to reduce or eliminate any potential death tax burden;
• Custodial arrangements for minor children;
• Durable Powers of Attorney that specifically allow each partner to act for the other in matters involving federal law, benefits controlled by federal law (social security and retirement), and other financial assets;
• Health Care Proxies to designate the persons who can legally make health care decisions in the event of a serious illness or accident;
• HIPAA Authorizations under the federal health information privacy law to allow partners to have legal access to each other's medical information;
• Declarations of Final Instructions that provide legally-binding instructions upon death, including burial, cremation, organ donation, type of memorial or religious services, and the like.  This is particularly critical where family members may either not be aware of the couple's relationship or may not be accepting of the relationship; and
• Documents drafted in a way that avoids the probate process and remains sensitive to a couple's personal and confidential information.