Registered domestic partnerships are similar to marriage, but do not create all of the same rights and responsibilities. Before the U.S. Supreme Court’s 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, most people in registered domestic partnerships were same-sex couples who lived in states that did not recognize same-sex marriage. Registered domestic partnerships remain an option for domestic partners in some cities and states. Some cities and states require one or both of the individuals to be at least 62 years of age to create a registered domestic partnership.

Laws vary from state to state, and some states refer to such a domestic arrangement as a civil union rather than a domestic partnership. Some of the benefits of a registered domestic partnership may include (1) the ability for one partner to secure health insurance for the other partner through an employer’s family health insurance plan; (2) visitation rights in hospitals and jails; (3) the right to take family leave to care for a sick partner; and (4) the right to take bereavement leave for the death of a partner under an employer’s bereavement leave policy.

In Alabama, there is no legal recognition of registered domestic partnerships or civil unions. After the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges in 2015, same-sex marriage became legal across the United States, including Alabama. This ruling effectively extended all marriage rights to same-sex couples, rendering the need for alternative legal recognition such as domestic partnerships or civil unions largely moot for the purpose of relationship recognition. Consequently, in Alabama, couples seeking legal recognition of their relationship, regardless of their gender, would typically enter into a marriage rather than a domestic partnership or civil union. This means that the benefits associated with registered domestic partnerships, such as employer health insurance coverage for partners, hospital and jail visitation rights, family leave, and bereavement leave, are accessed through the institution of marriage in Alabama.