News & Updates: In Fifth Circuit Appeal, Folger Levin Files Amicus Brief On Behalf Of PFLAG In Support Of Same-Sex Marriage

In September, Folger Levin represented Parents, Families and Friends of Lesbians and Gays, Inc. (“PFLAG”) in filing an amicus brief with the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit supporting  the right of same-sex couples to marry.  The case, De Leon v. Perry, Case No. 14-50196, involves an appeal from a district court’s ruling that Texas’s prohibition on same-sex marriage conflicts with the United States Constitution’s guarantees of equal protection and due process.  A copy of PFLAG’s amicus brief supporting affirmance may be found here.

Founded in 1973 by mothers and fathers of gay and lesbian children, PFLAG is a national, nonprofit organization that promotes the health, well-being and civil rights of lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (“LGBT”) persons, as well as their families and friends.  Nationwide, PFLAG has more than 200,000 members and supporters, with approximately 350 affiliates.  In 2013, PFLAG’s founder, Jean Manford, posthumously received the nation’s second-highest civilian honor, the Presidential Citizen’s Medal.

Over the past two years, Folger Levin has represented PFLAG in filing ten amicus briefs in same-sex marriage cases throughout the country.  Last year, Folger Levin was the recipient of PFLAG’s “Flag Bearer Award,” in recognition of its efforts to “elevat[e] our family voices to the Supreme Court of the United States to change hearts, minds and laws on behalf all lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender people, their families and friends.”