You have asked whether the Defense of Marriage Act (“DOMA”), Pub. L. No. 104-199, 110 Stat. 2419 (1996), would prevent the Commissioner of Social Security (the 'Commissioner') from providing the non-biological child of one member of a Vermont civil union with social security benefits on account of that individual’s relationship with the child. We conclude that it would not. Although DOMA limits the definition of 'marriage' and 'spouse' for purposes of federal law, the Social Security Act does not condition eligibility for CIB on the existence of a marriage or on the federal rights of a spouse in the circumstances of this case; rather, eligibility turns upon the State’s recognition of a parent-child relationship, and specifically, the right to inherit as a child under state law. A child’s inheritance rights under state law may be independent of the existence of a marriage or spousal relationship, and that is indeed the case in Vermont. Accordingly, we conclude that nothing in DOMA would prevent the non-biological child of a partner in a Vermont civil union from receiving CIB under the Social Security Act.

Portion of a opinion released from Steven Engel, Deputy Assistant Attorney General for the Justice Department's Office of Legal Counsel, in response to an inquiry by a lesbian couple, Karen and Monique. The couple entered a Vermont civil union, Monique gave birth to a son, Elijah, and though Karen did not adopt Elijah, she does appear as '2nd parent' on his birth certificate. (AM Law Daily) (US Department of Justice)