Effect on Utah Law
The Supreme Court announced today that it has declined to take the appeal of Utah and five other states regarding federal appellate courts’ striking down of their same sex marriage bans.
https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/nation/2014/10/06/supreme-court-gay-marriage/16546959/ (last visited 10-06-14).
The practical effect of the Supreme Court’s inaction on the matter is to allow the Utah federal District Court ruling of December, 2013 as affirmed by the 10th Circuit Court in June, 2014, to stand.
In layman’s terms, this means that same sex marriage appears to be legal again in Utah.
I will not use this forum to opine on the wisdom or merits of the rulings on this issue. Suffice it to say, the Supreme Court’s decision not to act, or to simply allow the federal court rulings to stand, significantly affected Utah law.
This may be an example of deafening silence by the Supremes on a controversial social issue. Allowing the federal appellate courts’ rulings affirming same sex marriage to stand also impacts six other states who must now abide by those rulings. This will likely bring a total of 30 states within the ambit of allowing same sex marriage.
One would imagine that at some point the Supreme Court might weigh in on the merits of this very hot button social issue. But for now, they have left the issue up to the states and lower federal courts.
This material should not be construed as legal advice for any particular fact situation, but is intended for general informational purposes only. For advice specific to any individual situation, an experienced attorney should be contacted.