In this article, the authors present a typology for organizing our current knowledge regarding same-sex couples in the United States who have and have not established legal ties between partners. This framework is complemented by a discussion of key rulings that define what is legally possible as well as the introduction of "legal consciousness," a construct for examining how perceptions of legal authority drive engagement with the legal system. Finally, the authors use their analysis to generate questions for future research and discuss policy and practice implications. (Contains 1 table.)