Marriage Laws Have Consequences

When I was growing up in the Caribbean, British sitcoms were a staple on television and one of my favorites was Are You being Served? starring John Inman as the uber-effeminate "poofter" Mr. Humphries. Well, it turns out that (surprise!) John Inman was gay and had a partner of 35 years named John Lynch when he died recently at age 71 and left 2.8 million British pounds (nearly 6 million U.S. dollars) in his will.
Fortunately, the longtime companions had been able to obtain a civil partnership in the United Kingdom:

Mr Lynch, 54, will not have to pay inheritance tax on the fortune he inherited because he and Inman underwent a civil partnership ceremony in December 2005 at London's Westminser register office.

If they had not been in a partnership, the taxman would have taken 40 per cent of everything the actor left over the £285,000 inheritance tax limit at the time of his death.

Inman's estate is believed to be the highest profile will of a gay man in a civil partnership since the ceremonies became legal in 2005 after decades of campaigning.

Before then gay men wishng to leave their estate to their partners would have to pay full inheritance tax while married men or women paid nothing on cash left to their spouses.

Hat tip, Pageone Q.