The Supreme Court has struck down the Defense of Marrrage Act (DOMA) as unconstitutional. This will entitle couples in states that recognize gay marriage to be eligible for federal benefits. In a related decision, the Court refrained from ruling on the broader civil rights issues of gay marriage by taking the position that the case which questioned the constitutionality of the law commonly known as “Prop 8” from California was not properly before the Supreme Court. This will defer resolution of that issue back to the lower court, which means that per California’s existing case law bans on same sex marriages have been deemed unconstitutional in that state. Source: The New York Times.