Palm Beach County – Another Florida judge has ruled Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.
The lawsuit was filed on behalf of W. Jason Simpson, whose husband, Frank Bangor, died in Pennsylvania in March. They were legally married in Pennsylvania in October of 2013. Bangor’s will left his entire estate – including property in West Palm Beach – to Simpson. This means Simpson neede the ability to administer the estate in Florida, and he was petitioning for appointment as Bangor’s personal representative in Florida. On Aug. 5, Palm Beach County Circuit Judge Diana Lewis ruled in favor of the couple.
“This Estate would have been opened as a routine matter on this Court’s ex parte calendar but for their same sex marriage. There is no rational basis to apply those laws to the facts of this case,” the ruling states. “Same-sex couples are entitled to respect, dignity and protection as any other spouse requesting to be a Personal Representative.”
According to Orlando attorney and LGBT activist Mary Meeks, this latest ruling is a much narrower ruling than the other three cases.
“The ruling says the marriage ban, including the marriage recognition ban, is unconstitutional ‘as applied’ in this specific case and is ‘strictly limited to the specific circumstances of this case – qualification of a non-resident, surviving same-sex spouse to serve as a Florida Personal Representative’ under Florida law,” Meeks said. “Unlike the other cases, there is no order for clerks to issue marriage licenses, just that this Judge is recognizing the marriage and is appointing the Petitioner as Personal Representative of his deceased spouse’s estate.”
This is the second ruling striking down Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage in a week – a Broward County Circuit judge ruled the ban unconstitutional Aug. 4, in favor of a lesbian couple seeking a divorce. Two other judges—in Monroe County and Miami-Dade— also have ruled the 2008 ban unconstitutional, but Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi filed appeals which triggered an automatic stay on the rulings.
