Tag Archives: Angelique Naylor

Newsweek on how it ain't easy for gay couples to become ex's in Texas — or anywhere else

Posted on
Angelique Naylor was recently granted a divorce from her wife in Austin. But she fears Attorney General Greg Abbott will appeal the decision.
Angelique Naylor was recently granted a divorce from her wife in Austin. But she fears Attorney General Greg Abbott will appeal the decision.

Last week I got wind that an unnamed major media outlet was looking for a same-sex couple trying to get a divorce. Coincidentally, when I heard this, I had just gotten off the phone with Jennifer Cochran, the attorney for Angelique Naylor, a woman who was recently granted a divorce from her wife in Austin. I sent Cochran’s e-mail address to my contact, and just like that a week later, we have this article from Newsweek. The article uses the Austin case to illustrate the tremendous difficulties faced by same-sex couples who want to divorce, but the reporter also talked to Pete Schulte, one of the attorneys in a gay divorce case in Dallas. In fact, as the article points out, it was the Dallas case that inspired the Austin couple to seek a divorce after they unsuccessfully sought to settle their affairs through other legal means. And it’s the Dallas case, in which oral arguments are set for April 21 before the 5th District Court of Appeals, that some believe may reach the U.S. Supreme Court:

As for Angelique Naylor, she and her lawyer, Jennifer Cochran, are counting down the days until the 30-day window expires for the Texas attorney general to appeal her divorce. Cochran also worries that a negative decision in the Dallas case could potentially overturn Naylor’s divorce. “These couples are already going through three times the expense and headaches,” she says. More gay couples are likely to move to Texas, she adds, and Austin has become a popular destination for all Americans: “This is an issue that is not going to go away.” Naylor, however, expects the attorney general to intervene. “It’s an election year, and apparently attacking gay people is a good thing to throw resources at. But in my heart and mind I’m divorced, no matter what. I’ve closed that chapter of my life.”

—  John Wright

Another Texas district judge tells AG Greg Abbott to go stick it in a gay divorce case

Posted on
Can you show me where in the Ten Commandments it says anything about gay divorce?
Can you show me where in the Ten Commandments it says anything about gay divorce?

As you may have heard, Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott really likes sticking his nose in other people’s business. Last year Abbott tried to intervene in a same-sex divorce case in Dallas, and Judge Tena Callahan told him to go stick it somewhere else. Abbott, apparently a sore loser, has appealed Callahan’s decision to the 5th District Court of Appeals, which will hear oral arguments in April. In the meantime, an Austin district judge on Wednesday told Abbott essentially the same thing. From The Houston Chronicle:

Abbott’s deputies had argued in court filings that Angelique Naylor, 39, and Sabina Daly, 42, may not be legally granted a divorce because Texas law defines marriage as between a man and a woman. Naylor and Daly were married in 2004 in Massachusetts, where gay marriage is legal. They returned to their home in Austin after their marriage and adopted a son who is now 4.

During a hearing, state District Judge Scott Jenkins questioned Abbott’s decision to pursue the case, noting that his office is involved in same-sex divorce litigation in Dallas that is already on appeal. That case, Jenkins said, is positioned to provide legal precedent on the legality of gay divorce. He suggested that a delayed disposition in the Travis County case could affect Naylor and Daly’s son.

But do you really think Abbott cares about the impact his involvement could have on this 4-year-old boy? How much you wanna bet his office appeals this decision, too?

—  John Wright

Austin woman contests wife's divorce petition by arguing that their marriage is illegal

Posted on

Here’s a new one: An Austin woman is contesting her wife’s effort to divorce her by arguing that Texas doesn’t recognize same-sex marriage. That’s right, Dallas may have had the first same-sex divorce case in Texas, but Austin could have the first case anywhere in which one of the parties has actually tried to use a ban on same-sex marriage to prevent their spouse from obtaining a divorce. According to KXAN, the couple married in Massachusetts in 2004 and adopted a child together. The woman who’s seeking the divorce, Angelique Naylor, told KXAN: “On the day that we got married, she wanted equal rights. On the day that we adopted our child, she wanted equal rights. She’s just trying to tell the judge she doesn’t have to divide those assets with me.”

—  John Wright