From the Court:

“The Court, in this decision, holds same-sex couples may exercise the fundamental right to marry in all States. It follows that the Court must also hold- and it does now hold- that there is no lawful reason for a State to refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex marriage…”

Here are some of the highlights and key points as it relates to our business:

• States must license same-sex couples to marry and recognize same-sex marriages lawfully performed in other states.
• Same-sex couples will have access to lifetime IRA benefits such as spousal contributions and the ability to use the Joint-Life Expectancy Table to calculate RMD’s.
• Same-sex IRA beneficiaries will be able to complete a spousal rollover and enjoy the benefits and special rules for inherited IRA’s.
• Same-sex couples will have access to qualified plan benefits, including spousal protection under ERISA and the QDRO exception to the 10% penalty.
• The most significant positive impact will be on Social Security. Same-sex couples are now able to qualify for benefits that were previously denied them.
• Estate planning is also a new benefit and include concepts around gift tax treatment, adoption rights, and greater ability to make medical and end-of-life decisions.