Wis. Group Sues to Stop DP Registry

An antigay group has brought another lawsuit challenging Wisconsin's domestic-partnership registry because partnerships are "substantially similar" to marriage, which is banned in the state for gay and lesbian couples.

The organization Wisconsin Family Action brought the lawsuit to the state supreme court in June 2009, but the case was declined without comment in November, according to the Journal Sentinel of Milwaukee.

"Our system of government serves no purpose if our elected officials can completely and capriciously ignore the will of the people with impunity," Julaine Appling, the president of Family Action and one of the plaintiffs, said in the article. "A reasonable person observing this registry would easily conclude that it is intended to mirror marriage."

Voters approved a constitutional ban on marriage equality in Wisconsin in 2006. However, Governor Jim Doyle approved legislation to institute a domestic-partnership registry in 2009. While same-sex couples are not given all of the same rights as heterosexual couples, registered partners may take medical or family leave to care for an ill partner, make end-of-life decisions, and have hospital visitation rights.