It took a Divorce to Get Marriage Recognized

How bizarre is this: It took a divorce filing to get marriage recognized by the Maryland high court (not that we're complaining- we're not!) 

Maryland high court: Recognize out-of-state, same-sex marriages

Court of Appeals ruling, in case involving divorce, is unanimous

It’s an odd time to recognize a marriage, during divorce, but the Court of Appeals of Marhttp://www.gazette.net/article/20120518/NEWS/705189595/1124/maryland-high-court-recognize-out-of-state-same-sex-marriages&template=gazetteyland has done just that.
In a 7-0 ruling released Friday, the state’s highest court ruled that Maryland should recognize the California marriage of a lesbian couple for the purpose of finalizing their divorce petition.
The broad language of the decision, however, suggests that marriage recognition will extend well beyond the case and to other issues such as spousal benefits and spousal privilege in the court system.
“I think it’s a great decision,” said Sen. Richard Madaleno (D-Dist. 18) of Kensington, who requested that Gansler write an opinion on the issue two years ago. A same-sex couple from Washington, D.C., shouldn’t see their marital status change just because they walk across Western Avenue in Bethesda, he said.
“The court got it exactly right,” Madaleno said. “I think [the decision] shows the growing momentum for marriage equality for our state.”
The women, Jessica Port and Virginia Anne Cowan, married in California in 2008. Two years later, the couple decided to separate, and Port filed for divorce in the Circuit Court for Prince George’s County. The court would not grant the divorce, calling the marriage of the couple “not valid” and “contrary to the public policy of Maryland.”
The women appealed their case to the state’s Court of Special Appeals, which granted a divorce petition, but not before the highest court decided to hear the case on its own initiative.
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