Gay and lesbian spouses in the United States can claim social security survivor's benefits even if they were married for less than nine months, a federal court has ruled, overturning a requirement that left some widows and widowers homeless. The US District Court for Arizona said that it was unconstitutional for the Social Security Administration (SSA) to deny benefits to LGBT+ spouses wed for less than nine months as same-sex unions were illegal in some US states until 2015.
