Case Analysis : Obergefell V. Hodges

In The Gay Marriage Case, Obergefell v Hodges, the United States Supreme Court decided that a state may not prohibit same-sex marriage. Instead, it emphasized that the fundamental right to marry is guaranteed to the gay society through the Due Process Clause of the 14th amendment of the United States of America Constitution. The involved decision maker in the case was Justice Anthony Kennedy, who gave four primary reasons for his decision.

The case was later sent to lower court. Voters approved a constitutional amendment to ban same sex marriage. Hawaii gain national attention, over 40 states over the next 10 years will pass the Defense Of Marriage Act (DOMAs). That defines marriage as a legal union between one man and one woman. On September 21, 1996. President Bill Clinton, signed Federal Defense Of Marriage Act into a law. Which define marriage at a federal level between one man and one woman. This meant there would be no recognition in same sex nor federal protection and benefits given to married heterosexual couples. Vermont was the first state to introduce same sex marriage by enacting a statue without being required to do so by a court decision. December 20, 1999, Vermont court ruled in baker v. Vermont that Vermont constitution entitles same sex couples to the same benefits and protections afforded by Vermont law to married opposite sex couples. Between 2005 and Sep. 15, 2010, 14 more states followed suit, bringing the total number of states with constitutional bans on gay marriage to 30. On July 19, 2011, the Obama administration announced that it will be supporting a bill to repeal the Defense Of Marriage Act. Another decision on Feburary 23, 2011, Obama instructed the Justice Department ti stop defending Defense of Marriage act, over concerns that it violates the fifth amendment. On May 9, 2012 President Obama was the first sitting

Hodges, because the US Supreme Court case brought equal marriage rights to same-sex couples in every state. Fourteen same sex couples, with two individuals whose same sex partners were deceased, filed suits in federal districts courts of their home state’s, arguing that respondents’ state officials violated the 14th Amendment denying the individuals the right to marry or lawfully marry in another state given full recognition. One of the petitioners, Obergefell, had established a lasting commitment together with John Arthur but unfortunately Arthur was diagnosed with Amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS). Due to that Obergefell and Arthur wanted to marry before Arthur died. The two married in Maryland but when Obergefell and Arthur came back to the state of Ohio where they encountered

The Supreme Court ruled in Obergerfell v. Hodges that States are required to grant a marriage license to same-sex couples and recognize the licenses of same-sex marriages from other states. In the oral arguments leading up to the June decision, the Obama’s Solicitor General, Donald Vierilli admitted before the Justices that religious institutions may lose their tax-exempt status if they continue to affirm that a marriage is between a man and a woman.

According to DOMA, “In determining the meaning of any Act of Congress, or of any ruling, regulation, or interpretation of the various administrative bureaus and agencies of the United States, the word 'marriage' means only a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife, and the word 'spouse' refers only to a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife” (sec 3). Until recently 2013, the US Supreme Court finally delivered the verdict that declared section 3 of the DOMA, which is the rejection of right to gay marriage is unconstitutional (Shapiro 208). In “Gay Marriage Is A Fundamental Right” by Nathan Goetting, “The right to many, and to marry the person of one's choice, is a fundamental right and a necessary aspect of human happiness. This has been an explicitly stated abiding principle since the Court used its power of judicial review to strike down as unconstitutional a legislature's definition of marriage in 1967.” Currently, 17 states in the United States have legalized the right to same sex marriage. The realization of DOMA is unconstitutional has further evidenced that gay marriage is one of the civil right that should not be taken away by the government, and it is an inevitable changes that open doors for equality and equity.

The recent decision of Obergefell v. Hodges confirmed same-sex marriage as being legal throughout the United States. This decision is bringing changes in other areas of family law. One area to feel its effects is the area of adoption by same-sex married couples.

In 1996, then President Bill Clinton signed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) which federally, “defined marriage under federal law as a legal union between one man and one woman” and gave states the right to choose to recognize same sex marriages in other states (Defense of Marriage Act). This act came about because of a Hawai’i Supreme Court case Baehr v. Lewin (1993) which “a Hawaii law prohibiting same sex marriage was unconstitutional.” From then this state court decision caused lawmakers to write DOMA in fear of recognition of same sex marriages from other states. When

When people go to get married, normally they do not think about this act as being illegal or a crime. However, it was not until June 26, 2015 that same-sex couples could get married in the United States. On that day, the Supreme Court ruled that gay marriage is a right protected by the US Constitution in all 50 states. Although it was

In June of 2015, the Supreme Court ruled same-sex marriage legal in the United States. “No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family” Justice Anthony Kennedy wrote for majority (Gorman, M. 2015, June 26). When the justice system was split on deciding, Kennedy was the deciding vote for the controversial matter. However, there are thirteen remaining states in the U.S. which have made constitutional or statutory provisions prohibiting same-sex marriage: with many states impelling the decision should be up to each state rather than the federal government. According to the Pew Research Center, 2015 was record high for supporters of gay marriage: with fifty-seven percent supporting the affair and thirty-nine percent opposing. Marriage is a moral and legal entitlement to any citizen, since marriage is a civil right, brings financial gain to federal, state, and local governments, and bestows worldwide unity: even for same-sex couples.

The United States Supreme Court has already ruled out in support of same-sex marriage after an extensive legal procedure. Based on the ruling, all the couples are entitled to the right of marriage may it be same-sex or the opposite sex. The law on the same-sex marriage has gone through detailed discussions,involving many different legal parties. Historically the law on the same-sex marriage has taken many years with different parties battling its litigation (Pinello, 2016). The civil right had the idea that same-sex couples ought to have same benefits as the heterosexual couples. Indeed, they must have same legal protection, this has been

In 2015, President Barack Obama announced that in all 50 states same-sex marriage was legal. Thousands, maybe millions, of queer people rejoiced and celebrated. They were able to marry the people they love the most, legally. The debate about same-sex marriage started in the 1970s, however before that time, no one discussed the idea of same-sex marriage. Baehr v. Miike was the first court as to rule “...excluding same-sex couples from marriage was discrimination” (lambdalegal.org). Three same-sex couples attempted to apply for marriage license in Hawaii, but were denied. Even though they met every requirement, there was one exception: being the same gender. As a result, they filed a lawsuit because they believed it was unconstitutional. The trial took six years, but eventually the state of Hawaii passed an amendment that allowed same-sex marriage. Massachusetts became the first state to legalize same-sex marriage on May 17, 2004 when the court case Goodridge v. Department of Public Health was presented. The Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders filed a case when they were denied a marriage license in 2001. According to them, denying the licenses was unconstitutional and the court’s decision was 4-3, in favor of same-sex marriage. Same-sex should continue to be legal because in the United States marriage is a basic right, therefore members of the gay community should have the same benefits as heterosexual couples, which decreases the suicide rate of people who are LGBTQ+.

In 2015 the Supreme Court ruled on a case about same-sex marriage, Obergfell v. Hodges. The final ruling (holding) of the case, stated by SCOTUSBlog, the fourteenth amendment requires a state to license a marriage between two people of the same-sex and also to recognize a marriage between two people of the same-sex when their marriage was lawfully licensed and performed

On June 26, 2015, same-sex marriage was legalized across the united states, due to a decision the Supreme Court made; the decision made all state level bans on same-sex marriage were considered unconstitutional, thus overruling the bans. In the dissenting argument on the Supreme Court’s Decision to legalize same-sex couple marriage, Chief Justice Roberts makes a passionate argument revolving around the fact that it was the Supreme Court that made the decision and not the Country.

“ In American politics the concept of equality tends to trump the First Amendment, and the left has already successfully framed marriage as a civil right (The American Spectator)”.Kennedy makes a great point about the amount of time used for cases. In 1954 Brown v. Board of Education case, the justices outlawed racial segregation in public education, but the opinion was later read by judges to strike down racial segregation broadly in city parks, swimming pools, bus stations and elsewhere. Obergefell v. Hodges is not quite the Brown v. Board of Education for gay rights. State sponsored oppression of gays and lesbians in society is not as severe as what African Americans endured in the 1950s. Because of the enormous progress made in recent decades, Obergefell

In June 2015, the United States Supreme Court, in a 5-4 decision, held that same-sex marriage is a fundamental right guaranteed by the due process and equal protection clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. In consequence, many new legal implications have arose from this decision. For example, now there’ll be same-sex divorces, same-sex spousal rights for life insurance, wills, and the like. What does this all mean legally for same-sex couples? As time progresses, it will become clearer how exactly these issues will be expanded to same-sex marriages, but now we discuss these issues as they stand today.