Equal Rights for Gays and Lesbians? Not Hardly

I attended Maryland State Bar Association's Solo and Small Firm Conference on Saturday.  One of the programs at this excellent program was the state of Gay and Lesbian marriage in Maryland.  Most of us here in the Trenches thought the passage of Amendment 6, legalizing gay marriage, would make the issues surrounding the dissolution of said marriages easier.  Boy, were we wrong!  The passage of the act does nothing to change the laws of parentage of children born to these unions, so a second parent adoption is still necessary.  Then, there's the question of dissolving all of those civil unions these folks entered into before marriage was legal - they need to be dissolved in a different proceeding.  Still more, even though Maryland recognizes gay marriage, many states don't, so all those medical powers of attorney and health care agent forms still need to identify the individual as such and not as a spouse.  But wait, the federal government still doesn't recognize gay marriage, so no marriage exemption for gay couples - Maryland follows the federal rule, so even though the state recognizes the marriage, it doesn't when the spouses are dead.  All of this is just the tip of the iceberg.  And you thought legalizing gay marriage just meant gays and lesbians have the same rights to be miserable going through divorce as heterosexuals.  Turns out, they still have it worse.  What a headache.  Here in the Trenches.