• Skip to main content
  • BREAKING: Save the Date for the 2021 Lavender Law® Conference and Career Fair - July 28-30! Read More >
  • BREAKING: Check out Lavender Law 365™, the LGBT Bar's inclusion coaching and consulting program! Read More >
MENU
The L.G.B.T. Bar

  • Lavender Law

    Annual Conference


  • Membership

    Join Us!


  • Lavender Law 365

    Inclusion Consulting

    • About
    • About Us
    • Leadership
    • Volunteer
    • Careers & Internships
    • News
    • Organization Financials
    • Need a Lawyer?
    • Contact Us
    • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Allies
    • Awards
    • Bar Affiliates
    • Job Board
    • Judicial Nuts & Bolts Academy
    • Lavender Law 365™
    • Law Schools
    • Law Students
    • Lavender Link
    • Webinars and Member Call-Ins
    • Member Practice Area Groups
    • Mental Health Resources
    • Racial Justice Resource Library
    • Events & Sponsorship
    • Annual
    • Upcoming Events
    • Out & Proud Corporate Counsel Receptions
    • Event Photos
    • Donate
    • Donate Now
    • Justice Council
    • Ways to Give
    • Lavender Law
    • Success Story Blog
    • Become a Sponsor
    • Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Member Log In
    • Member Spotlight Blog
    • Community Forums
  • Connect, Share Knowledge, and Succeed Within the LGBTQ+ and Ally Legal Community.

    • Advocacy
      • LGBTQ+ “Panic” Defense
      • LGBTQ+ “Panic” Defense Legislation Map
      • Safe Schools Brief Bank
      • Jury Access
      • Jury Access Legislative Map
      • The History of Jury Access and the LGBT Bar’s Advocacy
      • ABA Resolutions
      • Legal Advocacy – Amici Briefs and Public Comments
    • Allies
    • Awards
      • Dan Bradley Award
      • Out & Proud Corporate Counsel Award
      • Best LGBTQ+ Lawyers Under 40
      • Frank Kameny Award
      • Student Leadership Award
      • Leading Family Law Practitioner Award
      • Michael Greenberg Writing Competition
    • Bar Affiliates
    • Job Board
    • Judicial Nuts & Bolts Academy
    • Lavender Law 365™
      • Program Presenter
      • Law Schools
      • Law Firms
      • Companies
      • Blog
      • Lavender Law 365 Assessment
      • Share Your Story
    • Law Schools
    • Law Students
      • Law Student Congress
      • Activism Opportunities
      • Law School Affiliate Program
      • LEAD Academy
      • Resources
      • Law School Scholarships for LGBTQ+ and Ally Law Students
      • LGBTQ+ Scholarships for Law Students
    • Lavender Link
    • Webinars and Member Call-Ins
    • Member Practice Area Groups
      • Corporate Counsel Division
      • IP Group
      • Prosecutors’ Group
      • Family Law Institute
      • Family Law Attorney Directory
      • Protected: Attorneys with Expertise in Transgender Legal Issues
    • Mental Health Resources
    • Racial Justice Resource Library

    Programs

    Home / Programs / Advocacy

    Legal Advocacy - Amici Briefs and Public Comments

    The National LGBT Bar Association has submitted comments and signed on to many Amici Briefs that have been used in cases concerning LGBTQ+ issues or issues of discrimination. We have provided these briefs and comments for public viewing.

    Comments to the Department of Housing and Urban Development’s joint proposed rule “Making Admission or Placement Determinations Based on Sex in Facilities Under Community Planning and Development Housing Programs”

    The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development’s proposed rule would repeal HUD’s Equal Access Rule, which ensures federally-funded housing is available to all individuals regardless of gender identity and requires that individuals seeking access to single-sex facilities be placed and accommodated in accordance with their gender identity. HUD’s proposed rule would give taxpayer-funded homeless shelters license to discriminate against transgender, intersex, and nonbinary individuals. It would inflict significant harms on those individuals who experience homelessness. Nearly 1/3 of transgender individuals report having experienced homelessness in their life.
    The National LGBT Bar Association and Foundation wishes to acknowledge pro bono counsel Erin Meyer; partner John Roberts; associates Emily Cummins, Alex Downie, Lucas Kowalczyk, Ren Morris, and Eric Novac; and project assistant Sara Cody, of Proskauer Rose LLP for their assistance in drafting these comments.
    Download Comments

    Sharonell Fulton v. City of Philadelphia

    The City of Philadelphia learned that two of the agencies it hires to provide foster care services to children in the public child welfare system would not license same-sex couples to be foster parents based on the agencies’ religious beliefs. The City informed both agencies that City contracts prohibit such discrimination and stopped referring children to them. One of the agencies sued the City, claiming that the right to free exercise of religion entitles it to a taxpayer-funded contract to perform a government service even though it is unwilling to comply with the City’s requirement that contract agencies accept all qualified families. The amici urges that excluding LGBTQ+ people from foster parenting undermines the goal of placing our most vulnerable children in homes that are in the best interest of the child.

    Download Brief

    Comments to the Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security’s joint notice of “Procedures for Asylum and Withholding of Removal; Credible Fear and Reasonable Fear Review”

    In June, the Trump Administration released a draft rule that would effectively eviscerate the U.S. asylum process. Despite these dramatic changes being proposed, the Administration gave the public a mere thirty days to respond, in the midst of a global pandemic. These regulations erect new barriers at every stage of the asylum process and roll back decades of established legal precedent. Concerned about the impact this proposal would have on vulnerable LGBTQ+ asylum seekers, the National LGBT Bar coordinated with several LGBTQ+ immigration organizations and submitted its own comments.

    The LGBT Bar’s 19 pages of comments raise more than a dozen specific objections to the rule and detail how the proposed rule would cut off existing avenues to safety for LGBTQ+ asylum seekers. If this rule were enacted, it would deny protection to tens of thousands of LGBTQ asylum seekers who are currently entitled to asylum under our current system.

    Download Comments

    Gerald Lynn Bostock v. Clayton County, Georgia
    Altitude Express, Inc., and Ray Maynard v. Melissa Zarda and William Moore, Jr.
    R.G. & G.R. Harris Funeral Homes, Inc. v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and Aimee Stephens

    In these cases, three employers subject to Title VII hope to carve out discrimination against LGBT employees from the law’s protections. This court should reject the discredited idea that employers may discriminate in employment decisions to appease customer prejudice.

    Download Brief

    Doe v. Arrisi, et al.

    The plaintiff, under New Jersey law, is forced to keep her birth certificate marked as male because she does not wish to have an invasive medical procedure, despite her diagnosis of gender dysphoria under the ADA. The amici urge the court to deny the Defendant’s Motion to Dismiss the Plaintiff’s ADA and Rehabilitation Act claims.

    Download Brief

    Masterpiece Cakeshop, Ltd. v. Colorado Civil Rights Commission

    Couple David Mullins and Charlie Craig went to Masterpiece Cakeshop in July of 2012 to order their wedding cake. Cakeshop owner Jack Phillips refused to bake the cake based on his religious beliefs. A Colorado law prevents businesses that provide public accommodations from discriminating based on a range of factors, including sexual orientation. Mullins and Craig filed a compliant with the Colorado Civil Rights Division (CCRD) and the CCRD ruled in their favor. After a CCRD victory in the Colorado Court of Appeals in 2015 , the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.

    Download Brief

    G.G., By His Next Friend and Mother, Deidre Grimm v. Gloucester County School Board

    Note: This case was originally before the Supreme Court before the decision was vacated and sent back to the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals. G.G. is a student at a public high school. He wishes to use the restroom aligning with his gender identity. The Gloucester County School Board held multiple public meetings to decide whether or not he would be allowed to use the boys’ restroom and ultimately passed a resolution prohibiting any transgender students from using the restrooms aligned with their gender identities. This brief urges the court to rule that, under Title IX, G.G.’s gender identity is protected and that he must be allowed to use the restrooms, locker rooms, and other facilities matching his true gender identity.

    Download Brief

    Gloucester County School Board v. G.G., By His Next Friend and Mother, Deidre Grimm

    G.G. is a student at a public high school. He wishes to use the restroom aligning with his gender identity. The Gloucester County School Board held multiple public meetings to decide whether or not he would be allowed to use the boys’ restroom and ultimately passed a resolution prohibiting any transgender students from using the restrooms aligned with their gender identities. This brief urges the court to rule that, under Title IX, G.G.’s gender identity is protected and that he must be allowed to use the restrooms, locker rooms, and other facilities matching his true gender identity.

    Download Brief

    Berthiaume v. Smith et al

    During jury selection in which Raymond Berthiaume, a gay man, was the plaintiff, two potential jurors were struck by the defense. The court refused to allow the plaintiff  to present arguments evidencing that the potential jurors had been struck for their actual or perceived sexual orientation, creating additional road blocks to in the plaintiff’s right to a fair trial. The brief urges the court to hold, as the Ninth Circuit has, that sexual orientation is subject to heightened scrutiny and recognized as part of the Batson Challenge.

    Download Brief

    Lee v. United States

    Mr. Lee, an individual lawfully living in the United States for more than 25 years, pleaded guilty to possession of ecstasy after his attorney incorrectly informed him a guilty please would not result in deportation. The petitioner’s case addresses the harsh penalty faced by some immigrant families as a result of interactions with the US criminal justice system. Currently, minor non-violent offenses may result in the deportation of non-citizens, even if those individuals are lawful permanent residents.

    Download Brief

    Lee v. Tam

    Simon Tam, of the band The Slants, filed suit after the band name was rejected for trademark purposes. The defense argues that this rejection is not a violation of the Free Speech Clause of the First Amendment because potential marks that disparage a group or race of people do not further the provision of goods or services through commercial transaction.

    Download Brief

    Obergefell et al v. Himes

    In 2014, four separate cases challenging same-sex marriage bans were consolidated into one case before the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit. The challenge claimed that the various bans on same-sex marriage were unconstitutional.

    Download Brief

    Latta v. Otter

    Four lesbian couples, two of whom were raising children, were represented by the National Center for Lesbian Rights in filing a suit in late 2013 challenging Idaho’s ban on same-sex marriage.

    Download Brief

    Bourke v. Beshear

    Gregory Bourke and Michael DeLeon were legally married in Canada but found that their marriage was not recognized in the state of Kentucky. They filed suit challenging Kentucky’s law on behalf of themselves and DeLeon’s adopted children. They were later joined by three couples married in other states and continued to challenge Kentucky’s refusal to recognize valid marriages from other jurisdictions.

    Download Brief

    DeBoer v. Snyder

    April DeBoer and Jayne Rowse, a lesbian couple in Michigan, had three adopted children between the two of them. Michigan law restricted second-parent adoptions to married couples and, because Michigan did not recognize same-sex marriages, DeBoer and Rowse were not able to adopt each other’s children. After initially challenging the adoption law itself, their petition was eventually amended to reflect the underlying issue of Michigan’s ban on same-sex marriage.

    Download Brief

    Tanco v. Haslam

    In 2013, Tennessee had in place a law which prohibited the recognition of same-sex marriage. Three married couples, all who had married in other states and moved to Tennessee, filed a suit claiming that the law violated both their right to equal protection and to travel between states.

    Download Brief

    United States v. Windsor

    Edith Windsor was married to Thea Spyer in Canada in 2007 and their marriage was recognized in New York where they lived. The two had been together for 44 years when Spyer died in 2009. Due to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), Windsor was unable to claim the estate tax marital deduction that same-sex couples routinely receive. This discriminatory law required Windsor to pay over $350,000 in federal estate taxes. Windsor requested a full refund from the government, but the IRS rejected that claim because of DOMA. The case passed through district court and the court of appeals in New York before being slated to come before the Supreme Court in March 2013.

    Download Brief

    Hollingsworth v. Perry

    California’s Proposition 8 case considers the constitutionality of an amendment defining marriage as solely between a man and a woman. The case was first filed in May 2009 and asked for a preliminary order blocking Proposition 8. In August 2010, Judge Vaughn Walker struck down Proposition 8 on the grounds that it violated due process and equal protection clauses of the California Constitution. After a lengthy appeals process, in February 2012, the Ninth Circuit court upheld Judge Walker’s ruling declaring Proposition 8 unconstitutional. The United States Supreme Court will hear the case in March 2013.

    Download Brief

    Golinski v. Office of Personnel Management

    In 2008, Karen Golinski tried to enroll her spouse, Amy Conninghis in her employer-provided insurance plan. When she was denied, she filed a complaint under the Ninth Circuit’s Employment Dispute Resolution Plan that the denial of coverage for her spouse constituted prohibited discrimination. In January 2009, Chief Judge Alex Kozinski ruled that the denial did violate the Ninth Circuit’s employment policies because heterosexual court employees were able to receive benefits for their spouses. The Office of Personnel Management then claimed that the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) prevented coverage for the spouses of lesbian and gay federal employees. Golinski is now suing the federal government for equal benefits for her wife.

    Download Brief

    Gill v. Office of Personnel Management

    In 2009, the Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) filed the lawsuit in the District Court of Massachusetts. The plantiffs, Nancy Gill and Marcelle Letourneau, challenged the constitutionality of section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines the term marriage as “a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife.” In July 2010, District Judge Joseph Louis Tauro ruled that section 3 of DOMA was unconstitutional. Later, Judge Tauro stayed the implementation of his verdict in order to allow an appeal from the Department of Justice (DOJ). In January 2011, the DOJ filed a brief in the First Circuit Court defending DOMA, but on February 25, the DOJ decided it would “cease to defend” the case. This challenge marks the first time that a case filed against DOMA has reached a federal appellate court.

    Download Brief

    Christian Legal Society v. Martinez (U.S. Supreme Court)

    In 2010, the National LGBT Bar Association and its Law Student Division teamed up with 55 LGBT law student groups at our nation’s top law schools to file an amicus brief in Christian Legal Society v. Martinez. In 2004, the Christian Legal Society’s chapter at the University of California-Hastings filed a lawsuit after the school denied a funding request because of the group’s anti-LGBT discrimination policy. The question before the Court was whether the “Constitution allows a state law school to deny recognition to a religious student organization because the group requires its officers and voting members to agree with its core religious viewpoints.” The U.S. Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, affirmed the University of California-Hastings’ decision to deny funding to student groups that discriminate against its LGBT students.

    Download Brief

    In re Marriage Cases (California Supreme Court)

    In 2007, the National LGBT Bar Association (then the “National Lesbian and Gay Law Association”) submitted an amicus brief supporting the freedom to marry for same-sex couples and played a critical role in arguing that lesbian and gay couples should receive equal treatment under the law.

    Download Brief

    Lawrence v. Texas (U.S. Supreme Court)

    In 2003, the National LGBT Bar Association (then the “National Lesbian and Gay Law Association”) submitted an amicus brief supporting the plaintiff’s right to sexual privacy in the case which struck down the Texas sodomy law, holding that intimate consensual conduct was part of the liberty protected by due process under the Fourteenth Amendment.

    Download Brief

    Rumsfeld v. FAIR (Third Circuit Court of Appeals & U.S. Supreme Court)

    In 2004, the National LGBT Bar Association (then the “National Lesbian and Gay Law Association”) submitted amicus briefs challenging the constitutionality of the Solomon Amendment, which permits the military to recruit on college campuses despite the conflict between the “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” statute and the non-discrimination policies of many colleges that prohibit discrimination based on sexual orientation.

    Download Brief

    In re Guardianship of Kowalski (Minnesota Court of Appeals)

    In 1991, the National LGBT Bar Association (then the “National Lesbian and Gay Law Association”) submitted an amicus brief in support of the successful appointment of Karen Thompson as guardian for her lesbian partner, Sharon Kowalski, after she became incapacitated in a car accident. This case garnered national and international attention because Kowalski’s family contested the appointment of Ms. Thompson.

    Download Brief
    caret down

    Partner with the National LGBT Bar Association

    The National LGBT Bar Association is proud to offer our advocacy services as amicus curiae and our support for organizations in cases or initiatives that align with the LGBT Bar’s vision and mission.

    The Association does so by partnering with like-minded, progressive organizations to take positions on issues such as LGBT equality, the right of all LGBT people to live free from discrimination and continuing commitment to diversity in the legal profession. The Public Policy Committee of the National LGBT Bar Association advocates on behalf of justice for the LGBT community in all of its diversity through, among other things, written legal advocacy.

    The LGBT Bar seeks opportunities to work with other organizations in the future by drafting or signing on to amicus briefs and assisting with initiatives on civil rights issues important to our members. If you are currently working on a case or issue which you would like the National LGBT Bar Association to support, or if you would like further information, please contact our Executive Director, D’Arcy Kemnitz. Additionally, please keep the National LGBT Bar Association’s Public Policy Committee in mind when you are developing initiatives in the future.

  • LGBTBar Logo

    THE NATIONAL LGBT BAR ASSOCIATION

    1701 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036 | Phone: (202) 637-7661 | E-mail: info@lgbtbar.org

    • About
    • About Us
    • Leadership
    • Volunteer
    • Careers & Internships
    • News
    • Organization Financials
    • Need a Lawyer?
    • Contact Us
    • Programs
    • Advocacy
    • Allies
    • Awards
    • Bar Affiliates
    • Job Board
    • Judicial Nuts & Bolts Academy
    • Lavender Law 365™
    • Law Schools
    • Law Students
    • Lavender Link
    • Webinars and Member Call-Ins
    • Member Practice Area Groups
    • Mental Health Resources
    • Racial Justice Resource Library
    • Events & Sponsorship
    • Annual
    • Upcoming Events
    • Out & Proud Corporate Counsel Receptions
    • Event Photos
    • Donate
    • Donate Now
    • Justice Council
    • Ways to Give
    • Lavender Law
    • Success Story Blog
    • Become a Sponsor
    • Membership
    • Become a Member
    • Renew Membership
    • Member Log In
    • Member Spotlight Blog
    • Community Forums
    Privacy Policy
    © Copyright 2020 The National LGBT Bar Association. All rights reserved.