03.20.07
219 civil unions in N.J.’s first month
At least 219 gay couples applied to join in civil unions during the first month the legal institution was available in New Jersey, a state agency said in a report issued Tuesday.
Civil unions offer gay couples the legal benefits of marriage — but not the title. New Jersey lawmakers created the institution last December in response to a state Supreme Court ruling two months earlier that said it was unconstitutional to deny gay couples access to the protections of marriage.