''Blanchflower v. Blanchflower'', 150 N.H. 226 (2003), is a landmark decision by the New Hampshire Supreme Court which ruled that sexual relations between two females, one of whom is married, does not constitute

adultery Adultery (from Latin ''adulterium'') is extramarital sex that is considered objectionable on social, religious, moral, or legal grounds. Although the sexual activities that constitute adultery vary, as well as the social, religious, and legal ...

because it is not technically sexual intercourse.

Background

In 2003,

David Blanchflower David Graham Blanchflower, (born 2 March 1952), sometimes called Danny Blanchflower, is a British-American labour economist and academic. He is currently a tenured economics professor at Dartmouth College, Hanover, New Hampshire. He is also a ...

, a professor from

Dartmouth College Dartmouth College (; ) is a private research university in Hanover, New Hampshire. Established in 1769 by Eleazar Wheelock, it is one of the nine colonial colleges chartered before the American Revolution. Although founded to educate Native ...

, filed for divorce from his wife on the grounds that she was having an adulterous affair with Ms. Robin Mayer of

West Windsor, Vermont West Windsor is a town in Windsor County, Vermont, Windsor County, Vermont, United States. The population was 1,344 at the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census. It was known for its Ascutney Mountain Resort, which closed in 2010 and was bought by ...

. As in most cases of divorce involving alleged adultery, the professor was seeking an "at fault" ruling against his wife. His wife admitted that she was having an affair with Mayer, but Mayer argued that the affair did not constitute adultery under

New Hampshire New Hampshire is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States. It is bordered by Massachusetts to the south, Vermont to the west, Maine and the Gulf of Maine to the east, and the Canadian province of Quebec to the nor ...

law.

Ruling

After a lower court initially sided with David Blanchflower, the New Hampshire Supreme Court ruled in favor of the two women, concluding that adultery must meet the definition of sexual intercourse under New Hampshire law. In the 3-2 ruling, the majority determined that sexual relations between two females cannot constitute sexual intercourse and, therefore, the affair was not adultery. The decision was based on the 1961 edition of ''

Webster's Third New International Dictionary ''Webster's Third New International Dictionary of the English Language, Unabridged'' (commonly known as ''Webster's Third'', or ''W3'') was published in September 1961. It was edited by Philip Babcock Gove and a team of lexicographers who spent 757 ...

'', which defines sexual intercourse as coitus (penile-vaginal sex).

Reactions

Reactions to the ruling were mixed, with some gay-rights groups condemning the ruling for its failure to recognize sex between people of the same gender. Other gay rights groups viewed the ruling as a victory under the law for one lesbian couple after many years of discrimination.

Gay & Lesbian Advocates & Defenders GLBTQ Legal Advocates & Defenders (GLAD) is a non-profit legal rights organization in the United States. The organization works to end discrimination based on sexual orientation, HIV status, and gender identity and expression. The organization p ...

(GLAD), an

LGBT ' is an initialism that stands for lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender. In use since the 1990s, the initialism, as well as some of its common variants, functions as an umbrella term for sexuality and gender identity. The LGBT term ...

legal rights advocacy group, stated: "Both the majority opinion and the dissent made clear that this case was not about the status of same-sex relationships in society or any formal recognition same-sex relationships receive, and the opinions were both, on the whole, respectful of same-sex intimacy."

April 2021 ruling

In April 2021, in a case titled
In the Matter of Molly Blaisdell and Robert Blaisdell
'' No. 2020-0211 (2021), the New Hampshire Supreme Court held that the state's definition of adultery, which includes only intercourse between a married person and another person of the opposite sex, must be expanded to include same-sex intercourse in light of the legal and societal shift surrounding same-sex marriage. In doing so, it overruled ''Blanchflower "''to the extent that it limits the definition of 'adultery,' as that term is used in RSA 458:7, II, to sexual intercourse between persons of the opposite sex."
In the Matter of Molly Blaisdell and Robert Blaisdell
'' No. 2020-0211 (2021).

References

External links

* {{caselaw source , case = ''Blanchflower v. Blanchflower'', 150 N.H. 226 (2003) , googlescholar = https://scholar.google.com/scholar_case?case=1041469912256978903 , justia =https://law.justia.com/cases/new-hampshire/supreme-court/2003/blanc150.html , leagle =https://www.leagle.com/decision/2003376150nh2261342 New Hampshire state case law United States LGBT rights case law 2003 in United States case law 2003 in LGBT history 2003 in New Hampshire