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Cases & Experience

Obergefell v. Hodges (U.S. Supreme Court)

Couples from Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio, and Tennessee brought constitutional challenges to state laws that prohibit same-sex couples from marrying and that refuse official recognition of the marriages of same-sex couples who had been lawfully married in another state. The couples won their suits in the federal district courts in each state but the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit reversed, holding that the Fourteenth Amendment does not require states to recognize the right of same-sex couples to marry or to have their valid out-of-state marriages recognized. The Supreme Court granted certiorari. On behalf of Americans United for Separation of Church and State, we filed an amicus brief arguing that religious-liberty concerns raised by various opponents of the right to marry are not valid reasons to refuse to recognize the right.

Briefs

Amicus Brief