Doma Pros And Cons

It was in 2007 when Edith Windsor married Thea Spyer in Toronto, Canada because of its legality. In 2009 Spyer passed away and left behind her substantial estate to Windsor. The couple resided in New York; at that time the state recognized their out of state marriage to be legal. Nevertheless, the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) did not recognize their marriage for the spousal estate tax exception due to the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA). Under Section three of DOMA, the federal government did not recognize the marriage as a legal marriage. New York State acknowledged their marriage but under the federal law but Windsor was denied a spousal deduction for her federal estate taxes.
In the case, United States versus Windsor, the Supreme Court …show more content…
Hoverer, this ruling would not be recognized by the federal law imposed through DOMA. Section Three of DOMA was challenged for its violation on the equal protection principles of U.S. Constitution. It was clear that the Obama Administration did not stand behind DOMA, so the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group (BLAG) stepped up to its defense. BLAG established in 1993, it contains five associates of the house leadership, and it derives from the House of Representatives (“Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group”). BLAG’s defense argument was that DOMA judiciously correlated with the existing government objectives in affording a constant characterization of marriage for the determinations of federal benefits. The Obama Administration made it a point to counter that DOMA was impermissible. “The Obama Administration argues Section 3, which defines marriage as a between one man and one woman, is unconstitutional under the equal protection clause…” (United States v. Windsor). Not only did the Obama Administration oppose DOMA’s definition of marriage, but it also supported Windsor through her battle against DOMA and the Federal