## Facts

- John Langan and Neil Conrad Spicehandler were a long-term same-sex couple living in New York.
- In November 2000, they entered into a Vermont civil union and then returned to New York.
- In February 2002, Spicehandler was struck by a car, hospitalized at St. Vincent’s Hospital of New York, underwent surgeries, and died.
- Langan, as executor, sued the hospital and asserted a wrongful-death claim under EPTL 5-4.1.
- The hospital moved to dismiss the wrongful-death claim, arguing Langan lacked standing because he was not a “surviving spouse” under New York law.

## Issues

1. Whether a surviving partner in a Vermont civil union qualifies as a “surviving spouse” and “distributee” with standing to sue for wrongful death under EPTL 5-4.1.
2. Whether excluding same-sex civil-union partners from “spouse” status for wrongful-death standing violates the federal or state Equal Protection Clauses.
3. Whether principles of comity require New York to treat a Vermont civil union as equivalent to marriage for purposes of EPTL 5-4.1.

## Decision

- The Appellate Division, Second Department, reversed the trial court’s order to the extent appealed.
- The court held that a Vermont civil-union partner is not a “surviving spouse” within the meaning of EPTL 5-4.1.
- The court rejected the argument that comity required recognition of the civil union as a marriage-equivalent for wrongful-death standing.
- The court held that limiting wrongful-death beneficiaries to spouses in marriages recognized by New York did not violate equal protection under the United States or New York Constitutions.
- The court dismissed the wrongful-death cause of action for lack of standing.

## Legal Principles

- Wrongful-death standing and beneficiaries are defined by statute; courts generally may not expand the statutory class beyond the Legislature’s chosen terms.
- For EPTL 5-4.1, “spouse” was construed to refer to a spouse in a marriage recognized under New York law, not a partner in an out-of-state civil union.
- Comity does not require New York to treat a distinct out-of-state legal status (civil union) as identical to marriage for purposes of New York statutory benefits when the Legislature has not so provided.
- Equal protection challenges to statutory classifications concerning wrongful-death beneficiaries were assessed under rational-basis review; a legislative choice to limit beneficiaries to a defined spousal category may be upheld as rationally related to administrability and legislative policy judgments.

## Conclusion

The Appellate Division held that a surviving partner in a Vermont civil union was not a “surviving spouse” entitled to sue under New York’s wrongful-death statute, and it dismissed the wrongful-death claim for lack of standing while rejecting equal protection and comity-based arguments for treating the civil union as marriage for that purpose.


Langan v. St. Vincent’s Hosp. of N.Y., 25 A.D.3d 90, 802 N.Y.S.2d 476 (N.Y. App. Div. 2d Dep’t 2005)