On January 1, 2005, Assembly Bill 205, "The Domestic Partners Rights and Responsibilities Act of 2003," goes into effect. According to the National Center for Lesbian Rights (which has a good info page about the bill), under AB205 "[r]egistered domestic partners will be entitled to almost all of the rights, benefits, and obligations conferred upon married spouses by state law." This is a large expansion of the current rights domestic partners currently have.

To help you gain a better understanding of the new rights and responsibilities, Our Family Coalition, which serves the LGBT family community, is cosponsoring a seminar this Saturday on property, taxes and parentage issues for registered California domestic partners. Childcare available upon request. The seminar is free and runs from 11am-1:30pm. It will be held at Bananas, 5232 Claremont Avenue, Oakland. For information, call 415 981-1960.