Supreme Court of California

Under the Unruh Act, a business that extends benefits to spouses it denies to registered domestic partners engages in impermissible marital status discrimination.

Appellate Information

• Decided 08/01/2005
• Published 08/01/2005

Judges

• MORENO, J.

Court

• Supreme Court of California

Counsel

• For Appellant:
  
• Lambda Legal Defense and Education Fund, John W. Davidson, Los Angeles;  and H. Paul Kondrick, San Diego, for Plaintiffs and Appellants., Christine Sun, Alan Schlosser, San Francisco, Peter Eliasberg, Los Angeles, Jordan C. Budd;  James D. Esseks, Romana Mancini;  Miranda D. Junowicz, Steven C. Sheinberg, Los Angeles, Michelle Deutchman;  Geoff Kors;  Maxie Rheinheimer Stephens & Vrevich and Darin L. Wessel, Los Angeles, for American Civil Liberties Union of Northern California, American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, American Civil Liberties Union of San Diego and Imperial Counties, American Civil Liberties Union Foundation Lesbian and Gay Rights Project, the Anti-Defamation League, Equality California and Tom Homann Law Association as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants., Nancy Hogshead-Makar;  Nancy M. Solomon;  Shannon Minter and Courtney Joslin, San Francisco, for Women's Sports Foundation, California Women's Law Center and National Center for Lesbian Rights as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants., Bill Lockyer, Attorney General, Manuel M. Medeiros, State Solicitor General, Tom Greene, Chief Assistant Attorney General, Louis Verdugo, Jr., Assistant Attorney General, and Antonette Benita Cordero, Deputy Attorney General as Amici Curiae on behalf of Plaintiffs and Appellants.


• For Appellees:
  
• Morrison & Foerster, John R. Shiner, Rick Bergstrom, John Sobieski, Michael Katz, Los Angeles;  Horvitz & Levy, Frederic D. Cohen, Patricia Lofton and Jeremy B. Rosen, Encino, for Defendant and Respondent.