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same sex marriage news

We Might Already Have Australia’s First Same-Sex Divorce

Less than a week after Australia legalised equal marriage, one couple is already set to officially split.
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Over the weekend, there was a lot of talk about queer weddings. I know, because most of it was me asking people when they were getting married. But one couple is gunning for a different milestone. While the rest of us were talking about whether or not it was naff to give guests disposable cameras, a publicly unnamed Perth woman reached out to solicitor Maria Loukas and barrister Teresa Farmer to talk about divorcing her wife.

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To backtrack: In 2015 she and her partner were married at a European consulate in Perth, which allowed her to make it official under the laws of a county that did recognise the union. Pretty smart move. Or at least it was, until the marriage began to sour.

Farmer explained the problem to the ABC: "The difficulty for this particular couple was having married under legislation of a European country, they couldn't access the divorce system in that country because they weren't residents in that country, neither of them were".

That was until last week, when the marriage act was amended recognising their marriage. And what’s recognised, can be ended.

It’s actually a pretty happy ending if you think about it. As Loukas puts it: "For her it's been about not being able to move on with her life…She's been held back in many ways”.

If you think gay weddings are a good time, just wait for the gay divorce parties.

For more equal marriage news:

It's Time to Listen to Your LGBTQ+ Elders

Same Sex Canberra Couples Who Wed in 2013 Get Free Marriages

That Anti-SSM Christian Couple Aren't Getting Divorced After All