Newsday is reporting that Governor David Paterson is supportive of legislation legalizing gay marriage in New York.  This movement in New York to legislatively legalize gay marriage comes on the heels of the states of Iowa and Vermont legalizing gay marriage.  Currently, there are two other states aside from Iowa and Vermont, Massachusetts and Connecticut, where gay marriage is legal. 

While Newsday has reported that Governor Paterson faces staunch opposition to legalizing gay marriage in New York, the solution may be in the courts rather than in the legislature under the doctrine of comity.  There is currently a split among the New York trial courts whether to recognize a marriage that is valid in another country.  Currently, in 2006, the New York Court of Appeals held in the case of Robles v. Hernandez, 855 N.E.2d 1 (N.Y. 2006) that a gay marriage validly recognized under Canadian law was not valid under New York law based on the doctrine of comity, whereby a judicial tribunal gives recognition, reciprocity, and respect to foreign judgments.  However, Chief Justice Judith Kaye authored a vehement dissent in the case, characterizing the Court’s decision as an “unfortunate misstep.” Id. at 34. (C.J. Kaye, dissenting). Read the rest of this entry »