Milford resident Gerald Passaro II was one of the plaintiffs in a federal lawsuit in Connecticut that challenged the federal Defense of Marriage Act. In 2012, U.S. District Judge Vanessa Bryant struck down a portion of the law that barred same-sex couples from receiving federal benefits, and the case was combine with a New York challenge that ultimately resulted in the U.S. Supreme Court ruling a key provision of DOMA unconstitutional.
Now Passaro is back in federal court in Connecticut. He claims that even though DOMA is no longer on the books, his now-deceased partner’s former employer won’t provide him with spousal survivor benefits. Specifically, the lawsuit says that Bayer AG is violating provisions of the Employee Retirement Income Security Act.
