LGBT rights

Oregon's constitution bans same-sex marriage, but the Oregon Department of Justice has opined that same-sex marriages from other states must be recognized by Oregon governmental officials, The Portland Business Journal reports. The DOJ said that withholding benefits from same-sex spouses who legally wed out-of-state would violate equal protection principles and would be consistent with the policy of recognizing "valid out-of-state marriages that could not be performed in Oregon, including common-law unions," the publication also reports. Just like other states, lawsuits have been filed to challenge Oregon's ban on same-sex marriage.

A federal judge did not rule today as expected on Michigan's bans on same-sex marriage and same-sex adoption. Instead, the Detroit Free Press reports, the judge set a trial date in February. The judge also said in court that he must decide the issue as a matter of law.  The challenge is to a constitutional amendment adopted by voters. This is an example of an area left untouched by the U.S. Supreme Court: do state-level bans on same-sex matrimony violate federal or state constitutional rights?

A judge is expected to rule on a challenge to Michigan's same-sex marriage ban today, the Detroit Free Press reported. The challenge is to a constitutional amendment adopted by voters. This is an example of an area left untouched by the U.S. Supreme Court: do state-level bans on same-sex matrimony violate federal or state constitutional rights?

A clerk in North Carolina will begin to accept same-sex marriage applications, but there's a caveat. He won't sign the applications unless he gets the permission of the state attorney general. And according to this Chicago Tribune article, the attorney general personally supports same-sex matrimony but will defend North Carolina's Defense of Marriage Act barring same-sex unions.

PENNSYLVANIA: The register of wills in Montgomery County, Pennsylvania, ordered to stop issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples is seeking the Pennsylvania Supreme Court's review on whether the lower appellate court had jurisdiction and if the state health department opposing the licenses' issuance made out its burden of proof in the case, Reuters reports: http://whtc.com/news/articles/2013/oct/01/pennsylvania-clerk-appeals-ban...

NEW JERSEY: This state's attorney general has asked a state judge to put a stay in place until the New Jersey Supreme Court can rule on the constitutionality of the state's civil union law when it does not allow same-sex marriage, Bloomberg Businessweek reports. The AG argued, Bloomberg reports, "the judge should allow the Supreme Court, 'the ultimate arbiter of substantial constitutional issues, to definitively determine the contested issue and allow that court, if it deems necessary, to take the drastic step of rejecting on constitutional grounds' a state law.": http://mobile.businessweek.com/news/2013-10-01/new-jersey-asks-judge-to-...

WEST VIRGINIA: Lambda Legal has filed a constitutional challenge to WV's ban on same-sex marriage, arguing it violates the plaintiffs's rights under the Fourteenth Amendment, the Associated Press reports: http://m.tribtown.com/view/story/4c19a72e9dbc40cca08b54eb02037d72/WV--Ga...

MISSISSIPPI: A same-sex couple seeking a divorce after getting married in California are litigating to have their marital dissolution recognized under Mississippi family law,WMC-TV reports: http://m.wmctv.com/#!/newsDetail/23551743

That case may be the first of its kind in the state.

Republican lawyer Theodore Olson and Democrat lawyer David Boies, who successfully prosecuted the constitutional challenge to California's ban on same-sex marriage, have joined a case in Virginia that could be a test case in the U.S. Supreme Court to establish the rights of same-sex couples to marry anywhere in the United States, the Washington Post reports. There are many challenges proceeding in many states in the wake of the Supreme Court rulings earlier this year striking down the federal Defense of Marriage Act and rejecting the standing of the petitioners seeking to keep California's ban intact. Olson and Boies like the Virginia litigation as a test case because Virginia not only bans same-sex matrimony but the recognition of same-sex unions from anywhere else, the Post also reported.

The Record (Bergen County) reports that Friday's ruling by a trial judge that same-sex marriage violates that state's constitution is a "blessing and curse" for proponents. "While Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson’s 53-page opinion Friday was hailed as a landmark, a 'tipping point' in the decadelong crusade, some advocates worried it could hinder their main objective — getting the Legislature to enact same-sex marriage despite Governor Christie’s opposition." Christie plans to appeal Jacobson's decision and already vetoed legislation that would have established same-sex matrimony in the state. The Democrat-controlled legislature is going to try to garner enough votes to override the gubernatorial veto, but they need Republican votes to do so. But the court case might detract from the efforts to attract Republicans to that cause, The Record reports.

The Record (Bergen County) reports that Friday's ruling by a trial judge that same-sex marriage violates that state's constitution is a "blessing and curse" for proponents. "While Superior Court Judge Mary Jacobson’s 53-page opinion Friday was hailed as a landmark, a 'tipping point' in the decadelong crusade, some advocates worried it could hinder their main objective — getting the Legislature to enact same-sex marriage despite Governor Christie’s opposition." Christie plans to appeal Jacobson's decision and already vetoed legislation that would have established same-sex matrimony in the state. The Democrat-controlled legislature is going to try to garner enough votes to override the gubernatorial veto, but they need Republican votes to do so. But the court case might detract from the efforts to attract Republicans to that cause, The Record reports.

Bloomberg reports that an Illinois judge has found that 25 same-sex couples seeking to able to get married in Illinois are going to be able to proceed with their lawsuits. "Cook County Circuit Judge Sophia Hall announced her ruling today from the bench at the courthouse in downtown Chicago," Bloomberg also reported.

An Illinois judge is expected to rule today on a motion to dismiss a lawsuit seeking to establish same-sex marriage in that state, WREX out of Rockford, Illinois, reports.