A reciprocal beneficiary is a type of legal
arrangement that is offered in some states, such as
Hawaii, whereby two non-married people can assign some, but not all, of the rights of married
couples to one another.
John and Matt were
a gay couple in Hawaii, but could not legally marry each other or form a
civil union/
domestic partnership. So Matt designated John as his reciprocal beneficiary to at least get a few rights.
