Japan court denies spousal benefits to same-sex couple

A Japanese court ruled Monday that a person in a same-sex relationship is not entitled to spousal benefits provided to a person in marriage or in a common-law marital relationship, rejecting a damages claim sought by a woman against her former employer, Hokkaido prefectural government.The Sapporo District Court denied Kaoru Sasaki's claim for the 4.7 million yen ($32,000) she sought in spousal benefits from the Hokkaido government. According to her lawyers, the lawsuit is Japan's first centered on the family relationship of same-sex partners.Sasaki's lawyers argued that the ruling contradic…READ FULL ARTICLE