Tag: germany

German court declines to rule on joint adoption by gay couples

Germany’s highest court has refused to rule on allowing same-sex couples in civil partnerships the right to adopt children. On Friday, the Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe, south-west Germany, dismissed on procedural grounds a request from a Berlin district court to rule on the matter. Deutsche Welle reports the case was introduced by a gay couple… Read more »

Germany’s top court rules gay couples are banned from joint adoption

Despite the Constitutional Court ruling last year that gay couples could adopt together on a technicality, they have thrown out a referral asking them to rule on joint same-sex adoptions Germany’s top court has ruled gay couples are banned from joint adoption today (21 February), despite being allowed to on a technicality. The Constitutional Court… Read more »

Germany gets its first out lesbian cabinet minister

In low key fashion, Germany’s new Environment Minister Barbara Hendricks came out this week in a newspaper interview – making her the country’s first openly lesbian cabinet member. Ms Hendricks, a member of the Social Democrats for 20 years, mentioned in an interview with the Rheinische Post that she would “be spending New Year’s Eve… Read more »

Germany’s openly gay foreign minister loses seat and job

Guido Westerwelle, Germany’s first openly gay Foreign Minister, has failed to retain his seat in parliament, forcing him out of that role German Foreign Minister Guido Westerwelle has lost that job after his party failed to gain enough of the vote to retain his seat in parliament. Westerwelle’s Free Democratic Party only received 4.8% of… Read more »

German court grants gay unions marriage tax breaks

Berlin(AP) – Gay rights campaigners won a victory over the German government Thursday as the country’s top court ruled that homosexual couples in civil unions should receive the same tax benefits as heterosexual married couples. The Federal Constitutional Court in Karlsruhe ruled that treating the two forms of partnership differently for tax purposes violates the… Read more »