Oral arguments in the Prop 8 case took place yesterday in San Francisco. We heard from the proponents of Prop 8, represented capably by Charles Cooper, and a deputy clerk from Imperial County, represented less than capably by Robert Tyler.

Then we heard from David Olson and Ted Boies (no, wait, strike that, reverse it, sort of) — David Boies and Ted Olson — capably representing marriage equality. Mike, Andy and Corey ran a successful live blog of the hearing, available now here, and asked me and Richard Socarides to join. Check it out and see what happened.

Today, I would like to take a step back, dot the i’s and cross the t’s, and see what we heard, what we didn’t hear and determine what is likely to happen next. In short, as with many appeals, it is hard to handicap. These cases are won on the briefs, you can really only lose at oral argument.

Full Story from Towleroad.com

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

There’s been lots of news and commentary about the Prop. 8 oral arguments before the 9th Circuit Court of Appeals. During our live chat, we got expert commentary from USC Constitutional Law Professor David Cruz. There are complicated issues of standing to resolve before the judges even get to the merits.

Lisa Keen was in San Francisco for the hearing and provides an overview. She is spot on here:

…

The panel is expected to render its decision on both the standing issue and the constitutionality of Proposition 8 within a few months. Boies speculated during a post-argument press conference that the earliest the panel would likely render a decision is early next year and the earliest the case might be heard by the Supreme Court – during its almost inevitable appeal – would be 2012.

Full Story from Americablog

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.

On August 4, 2010, U.S. District Court Judge Vaughn Walker issued a decision in the case of Perry v. Schwarzenegger concluding that Proposition 8, the California constitutional amendment barring same-sex couples from marrying, violates the United States Constitution. Judge Walker wrote a 136-page decision that analyzed all the evidence submitted in the three-week trial. He ruled that Prop 8 violates the federal constitutional guarantees of due process and equal protection. The group that put Prop 8 on the ballot, known as the Prop 8 “proponents,” has appealed that decision to the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, which heard oral argument in the case on December 6, 2010.

1. My partner and I want to get married in California. Now that Judge Walker has ruled that Prop 8 is unconstitutional, when/where/how can we do that?

Same-sex couples in California cannot yet marry because the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals “stayed” Judge Walker’s ruling while the appeal is pending. That means that same-sex couples will not be able to get married in California until the appeals court has finished reviewing the case.

Same-sex couples can currently get married in five states in the U.S.: Connecticut, Massachusetts, Iowa, New Hampshire, and Vermont, as well as Washington, D.C. A number of other countries also allow same-sex couples to marry, including Canada.

Full Story from Pam’s House Blend

Click here for gay marriage resources in California.

To subscribe to this blog, use the rss feed on the right, or use the form at right to join our email list. You can also email us at info@purpleunions.com. Or find us on Facebook – just search for Gay Marriage Watch (you’ll see our b/w wedding pic overlooking the Ferry Building and Bay Bridge in SF). We’re also tweeting daily at http://www.twitter.com/gaymarriagewatc.