First gay civil union law goes into effect

First gay civil union law goes into effect

October 1, 2009 04:00:00 am

On October 1, 1989, the Registered Partnership Act went into effect in Denmark. It was the first law in the world that allowed civil unions between homosexual couples.

Read a report on the world’s first civil unions from the New York Times.

THIS DAY @ LAW

English legal historian Frederic Maitland born

Frederic Maitland, legal historian and co-author of the History of English Law, was born on May 28, 1850.

Learn more about Frederic Maitland.

Indian Removal Act passed

On May 28, 1830, President Andrew Jackson signed into law the Indian Removal Act. The act authorized Johnson to exchange federal lands in the West for Indian lands in the American Southeast. While some tribes gave up their lands peacefully, others resisted. The "Trail of Tears" killed approximately 4,000 Cherokees in a forced march into the West. Learn more about the Indian Removal Act from the US Library of Congress.