(Honolulu, Hawaii) A gay couple not allowed to move back into family housing at the University of Hawaii has settled their lawsuit against the school.

They reapplied for family housing for the 2007–2008 school year, but the University denied their request.

In a letter to the couple, the interim director of University Housing Services stated that the University “recognizes marital status as defined in Section 572-1 of the Hawaii’s Revised Statutes,” which restricts the term “marriage” to different-sex couples.

The letter went on to state that “[u]ntil such time that the state revises its definition of marital status, we will continue to apply the existing definition to our assignment policy for married housing.”

Ngo and O’Leary filed suit in March with the help of Lambda Legal. 

Lambda in its lawsuit noted that the university had denied Ngo and O’Leary housing merely because they were not a married couple.  However, the Supreme Court of Hawaii already has held that the denial of any of the benefits of marriage to same-sex couples constitutes discrimination in violation of the Hawaii Constitution.

The suit said that the couple had incurred unnecessary expenses as a result of the university’s action.

The couple was forced to lease a more expensive off-campus apartment.  It was not within walking distance to campus, so O’Leary was “forced to incur significant transit expenses to get to and from his classes.”  He also had to forgo use of the subsidized student meal plan. The additional expenses amounted to several thousand dollars per year.

In a statement, Lambda said that the lawsuit has now been settled to the mutual satisfaction of the parties, but did not provide details.

Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, the university said it would create accommodation for gay and lesbian pairs. The settlement of the lawsuit involved only the monetary issues incurred as a result of the denial of housing.