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Same-Sex Marriage and the Supreme Court

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News about same-sex marriage cases around the country seems to be popping up all the time.  For instance, this week the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals heard arguments regarding same-sex marriage restrictions in three states.  And last week, the 7th Circuit Court of Appeals declared the same-sex marriage bans in two states to be unconstitutional.  Now, the Supreme Court just revealed that it will be discussing same-sex marriage petitions from five states (Indiana, Oklahoma, Utah, Virginia, and Wisconsin) at a private conference on September 29th.  Whether the Supreme Court will ultimately decide to hear any of these cases is still an open question.  However, given all of this activity, many people believe that the Supreme Court should, and will, act now. 

To find out more regarding same-sex marriage laws in the states, see the National Conference of State Legislatures’ website.  It provides information about which states have same-sex marriage laws as well as the status of those laws, including information about the states where laws have been overturned and are pending appeal (such as Texas) and the state laws that have court challenges pending.  For more information about the cases the Court will consider on September 29th, see the SCOTUSblog.
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