The Legal Implications of Marriage

California Attorney General Jerry Brown is submitting a referendum to eliminate the state government's recognition of marriage and reclassify unions as "domestic-partner contracts."

Essentially, this is a way to try and get around the nastiness that has been brought up by Prop 8. From a Libertarian stand point (and to a degree from a small government standpoint) I can appreciate the merits of this idea. I wonder however what this will mean in terms of other laws usually tied to marriage (domestic violence, child support, alimony, community property, etc.)? Will all these laws have to be re-written and will the state of California still have to issue licences codifying the domestic partner contract (giving the anti-homosexual marriage side another point of attack)?

One of the main reasons the DOMA was opposed a little heavier in Ohio rather than other places was because it opened loopholes for domestic violence perpetrators to avoid being charged with the more severe options if they committed their abuse on a partner outside the traditional marriage construct. I am curious as to what kind of loopholes and other problems would be created by California actually enacting this referendum.

Of course it may not pass, but it does give one a forum to conduct a legal analysis of the various pros and cons of the possibility. I look forward to Mrs. X's take on the potential ramifications (at least if this were attempted in Ohio).