Janis Cowhey, Modern Family & LGBT Services Group Co-Leader, Interviewed by TheStreet.com, "Supreme Court Ruling on Gay Marriage to Impact Businesses, Individuals."
TheStreet.com
By Rhonda Schaffler
Excerpt:
There are financial implications for individuals and businesses following the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling that legalizes same-sex marriage nationwide. Janice Cowhey, a partner at Marcum, said the ruling will impact the economy and that the marriage business will boom. Cowhey serves as Co-leader of the Modern Family & LGBT Services Practice Group at Marcum. For businesses, there will be an impact on employee benefits. Cowhey said gay employees who are married should make sure their employer knows they have a spouse, so that taxes are withheld correctly and that health insurance costs are adjusted. Individuals in same-sex marriages should also review their own financial and estates plans, and how their assets are titled. ‘There’s a lot of things to think about. Estate planning, it’s nice in the fact that you are now next of kin, which you were not before,’ said Cowhey. ‘You were a legal stranger in the eyes of the law. Now you are next of kin, you can go to the hospital, you can inherit, you can’t be dis-inherited from a 401K without your permission.’ Cowhey said it will take some time for businesses to make changes.
