Publication Date
Winter 2019
Journal
Arizona State Law Journal
Abstract
For much of this nation's history, the vast majority of people have believed that being married to more than one person at the same time is deeply problematic. Further, polygamous marriage has never been legal in the United States. Despite this, some people have been in plural or group relationships and some of these people have wished to gain legal recognition for these relationships. The arguments for recognizing such relationships are persuasive, but the prospects for legalization of polygamous marriage seem slim in the near future. This Article offers a suggestion of how the law of domestic relations might deal with such relationships, focusing on same-sex “triads.” The proposal is that domestic partnership or civil union laws, which remain on the books in some jurisdictions, but are now rarely used, could be repurposed and adapted to recognize and protect triads and perhaps other group and plural relationships.
Volume
51
Issue
4
First Page
1395
Last Page
1420
Publisher
Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law
Keywords
Polygamy, Marriage and Couples, Domestic Relations, Fourteenth Amendment, Religion and the Law, Sexuality and the Law
Disciplines
Family Law | Fourteenth Amendment | Law | Law and Society | Sexuality and the Law
Recommended Citation
Edward D. Stein,
How U.S. Family Law Might Deal with Spousal Relationships of Three (or More) People,
51
Ariz. St. L.J.
1395
(2019).
https://larc.cardozo.yu.edu/faculty-articles/433
Included in
Family Law Commons, Fourteenth Amendment Commons, Law and Society Commons, Sexuality and the Law Commons
