When Heather Brassner, a lesbian from Lake Worth, wed her lover Megan Lade in a Vermont civil union on July 6, 2002, she could not have imagined that she was taking the first step toward legalizing same-sex divorce in Florida. Even officials in the state of Florida would have found it bizarre that, as of 1:30 p.m. Wednesday, September 10, Brassner will be granted her legal divorce from Lade—this in a state where same-sex marriage is still illegal.

In Brassner’s lawsuit, Brassner v. Lade, she alleges that four years ago, Lade cheated on her and then disappeared from her life. Despite hiring a private investigator to locate Lade, Brassner was unsuccessful and has no idea in which state Lade may now be living.

When Brassner, an art dealer who has lived in Florida for the past fourteen years, attempted to get the state of Vermont to dissolve her civil union with Lade, she was told by Vermont that Lade had to provide a signed affidavit from Lade, affirming her knowledge of a pending divorce action. With Lade’s location unknown, such an affidavit was impossible to provide. It was then that Brassner decided to sue Lade for divorce in Broward County.

With help from her attorney Nancy Brodzki, Brassner filed for divorce in September 2013. Eventually the case was assigned to the Broward County Circuit Court under Judge Dale Cohen, but since Florida does not recognize same-sex marriages or civil unions from other states, Cohen announced that he would need time to determine the constitutionality of the ban on recognizing same-sex marriage and civil unions.

Last August 4, Cohen declared in favor of granting the divorce, but placed a hold on the decision for 30 days pending appeal. In announcing his decision, Cohen, by default, also ruled on the constitutionality of banning same-sex marriage.

“To discriminate based on sexual orientation, to deny families equality, to stigmatize children and spouses, to hold some couples less worthy of legal benefits than others based on their sexual orientation is against all that this country holds dear, as it denies equal citizenship. Marriage is a well recognized fundamental right; all people should be entitled to enjoy its benefits., Cohen wrote.”

“This Court finds that Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage violates the guarantees of due process and equal protection under the laws,” Cohen ruled. “Florida’s prohibition on same-sex marriage denies some citizens, based on their sexual orientation, the fundamental right to marry, and does so without a legitimate state purpose. This Court finds these laws are unconstitutional and grants the Petitioner’s Motion For Declaratory Relief, declaring Florida’s ban on same-sex marriage unconstitutional.”

Even though she was not a party to the lawsuit, Florida state attorney general Pam Bondi requested that Judge Cohen continue his stay on his ruling. At press time, Cohen had no response and planned on holding a hearing to confirm the divorce of Brassner from Lade at 1:30 p.m. today.

For her part, Brassner has moved on and plans on marrying her current girlfriend, Jennifer Feagin, and has stated she would love to have the ceremony in Florida, when the ban against same-sex marriage in this state is lifted. In the meanwhile, Brassner has received her divorce in a state where she could not have been married.

In theory, when Cohen decided in favor of Brassner, he also ruled in favor of same-sex marriage, leaving it up to county clerk Howard Forman whether or not to begin issuing marriage licenses. He suggested that he would announce a decision within days.

“I’m researching it as quickly as I can. We’ve been researching it for months,” Forman said in a statement last week. “Florida’s changing a lot and we’re vetting the issue as hard as we can.”