Esposito and Bosee had been revising their wills in 2012 when they decided adoption was the only way to gain a few of the same benefits allowed to straight married couples.
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The pair have fought a court battle over the issue – but their request was rejected by a trial court judge, who says that he only has the ability to annul adoptions in instances of fraud. But now, Esposito says, “We realized we could have a complete union, which is what we want”.
But in their attempt to get married they have hit a very unusual road bump, because they’re technically father and son. The situation is not exclusive to the Allegheny County couple. He added that the goal of the adoption law was to significantly lower the Pennsylvania inheritance tax upon the death of one of the men from 15% to 4%.
While he refused to set a precedent, he said he welcomed a landmark ruling from a court of appeal onto how the cases should be dealt with in the future.
A couple who are legally father and son have suffered a setback while fighting for their right to marry – but it’s not as weird as you think.
While in most of the country there have not been problems implementing the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision in Obergefell vs. Hodges, there have been a few pockets of resistance.
At the time the couple, who had been together for more than 40 years, believed gay marriage would never become legal across America in their lifetimes.
Democratic Senator for Pennsylvania, Bob Casey, urged the Justice Department to support the couple’s case.
“LGBT couples should have the right to obtain a marriage license, no matter the state or jurisdiction in which they reside”, Casey wrote.
Meanwhile the ACLU is hopeful that a Superior Court will establish legal principles that will help make cases like Esposito and Bosee’s more easy.
In his letter, Mr. Casey notes that “the law has changed dramatically since the adoptions were first carried out”.
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The Justice Department is reviewing the request. Following the denial, they are now being more cautious about planning the wedding. When they filed their adoption annulment they anticipated being able to marry the same day. “Judge O’Toole had other ideas”, Esposito told CNN.
