Gay University of Hawaii Couple Settles Law Suite
September 2, 2008 by James Hipps · Leave a Comment
A gay couple who were suing the University of Hawaii for not allowed to move back into family housing has reached a settlement.
The University has revised its housing policy so it accommodates committed same-sex couples.
Phi Ngo and Joseph O’Leary were represented by Lambda Legal in their lawsuit against the school which was filed in March of 2008. During the 2006-2007 school year, The couple resided in family housing on the main campus of the University of Hawai’i, Mânoa while O’Leary was engaged in earning a degree in history. They reapplied for family housing for the 2007 – 2008 school year, but the university denied their request as a same-sex couple. In a letter dated May 30, 2007, the interim director of University Housing Services stated;
“The University recognizes marital status as defined in Section 572-1 of the Hawai’i Revised Statutes.”
This statute, which restricted the term “marriage” to different-sex couples, was the reason the couple was denied living arrangements.
Read more about this at lambdalegal.org.
