Kramer Levin has submitted high-profile amicus briefs in virtually every major Supreme Court LGBTQ rights case since the 1990s — starting with a brief in Dale v. Boy Scouts of America, on behalf of PFLAG and other organizations, seeking to combat myths and stereotypes about gay people. The firm also submitted a brief in Lawrence v. Texas — the case striking down laws criminalizing consensual same-sex sexual conduct — rebutting specious public health justifications that had been advanced for such laws. Kramer Levin’s brief was cited by U.S. Supreme Court Justice David Souter during the oral argument in Lawrence. In the marriage equality litigation, Kramer Levin submitted amicus briefs on behalf of a broad coalition of mainstream religious stakeholders in United States v. Windsor (which struck down part of the Defense of Marriage Act) and Hollingsworth v. Perry (which left standing a decision striking down Proposition 8 in California), demonstrating the diversity of views on marriage equality within the mainstream religious community and refuting the idea that there is a single “Christian” or “religious” view of marriage. Following the victory in Windsor, Kramer Levin submitted updated versions of the religion brief in trial and appellate courts across the country and, eventually, in Obergefell v. Hodges, which vindicated the freedom to marry nationally. In recent years, the firm has submitted similar briefs in the Masterpiece Cakeshop, Bostock and 303 Creative cases, among others.

Kramer Levin dedicated thousands of hours to pro bono litigation to help establish and protect marriage equality in New York State. The firm served as co-counsel with Lambda Legal in Hernandez v. Robles, which sought equal marriage rights for same-sex couples under the New York State Constitution. The firm won a trial court order striking down marriage discrimination in New York, and, while that decision was overturned, the case sparked intense debate and led to the first passage of a marriage equality bill by the New York State Assembly in 2007 and enactment of marriage equality in the state in 2011. The firm also worked with Lambda Legal on a series of cases, culminating in Lewis v. New York State Department of Civil Service, establishing under New York law the validity of out-of-state marriages of same-sex couples. Following the enactment of marriage equality in New York, Kramer Levin sued a landlord who refused to add a longtime spouse to a rent-stabilized lease, and secured a significant settlement for the couple. 

Kramer Levin was co-counsel with the ACLU in McMillen v. Itawamba County School District, a case vindicating the right of a lesbian high school student in Mississippi to attend her school’s prom with a same-sex date. The firm helped secure a favorable settlement after winning a positive initial ruling that sparked a national outpouring of support for the firm’s client, Constance McMillen. Kramer Levin also represented another Mississippi teen in a suit challenging her school’s decision to exclude her from the high school yearbook rather than publish a photograph of her in a tuxedo. The firm defeated a motion to dismiss the case and secured a favorable settlement protecting the student’s right of expression. Kramer Levin also litigated the case that established second-parent adoption rights under Delaware law; represented the lesbian survivor of a victim of the Sept. 11 attacks in a lawsuit, which ultimately settled, seeking recognition as a surviving spouse for purposes of receiving Victims’ Compensation Fund benefits; and represented a nonbiological mother in a companion case to Matter of Brooke S.B. v. Elizabeth C.C., in which the New York Court of Appeals recognized the right of a nonbiological, nonadoptive mother to seek custody and visitation rights of a child jointly raised in a same-sex union. 

As part of its deep commitment to asylum and other immigration matters, the firm has obtained asylum for dozens of LGBTQ and HIV-positive clients, including many who are transgender or gender nonconforming. Kramer Levin received Immigration Equality’s Safe Haven Award for outstanding representation of LGBTQ/HIV+ clients from around the world. The firm also served as co-counsel with Immigration Equality and Lambda Legal in a suit enjoining the so-called Death to Asylum Rule, which would have negatively impacted almost every aspect of the asylum system and would have made it nearly impossible for LGBTQ and HIV-positive refugees who are fleeing persecution in their home countries to receive asylum in the United States. Likewise, the changes would have almost entirely banned asylum for those making gender-based claims and for victims of non-state violence.

Kramer Levin has helped vindicate the rights of transgender individuals in a variety of settings, including through the asylum work described above. The firm obtained asylum for several transgender individuals, including a transgender woman fleeing a lifetime of persecution in Peru and a transgender woman from Malaysia who reasonably feared persecution if she returned home. Kramer Levin has also obtained name changes and appropriate identity documents for clients of Advocates for Transgender Equality (formerly the Transgender Legal Defense and Education Fund) and other organizations. In addition, the firm submitted a brief on behalf of a broad coalition of religious stakeholders endorsing equal treatment of transgender individuals in Bostock v. Clayton County, the landmark case in which the Supreme Court held that discrimination against gay and transgender people constitutes sex discrimination under Title VII. More recently, the firm submitted a brief on behalf of retired military leaders in In re Transgender American Veterans Association, urging the Veterans Administration to repeal discriminatory regulations that exclude gender-affirming surgery from VA-provided healthcare.