A Federal Judge in the Western District of Washington adopted the recommendation of a magistrate judge and struck down as unconstitutional the exclusion of some widows and widowers from Social Security survivor programs.

This class action lawsuit included plaintiffs whose same-sex partner died before same-sex marriage was legal in their state and who had applied for survivor’s benefits from the Social Security Administration. In Thornton v. Saul, Helen Thornton represented the class.  Ms. Thornton sought benefits based on her 27-year relationship with her partner who died in 2006, 6 years before same-sex marriage was legal in Washington.

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