MercoPress. South Atlantic News Agency

SCOTUS rejects challenge to same-sex marriage ruling

The Court’s denial of the case temporarily leaves the Obergefell precedent intact

The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) on Monday upheld its landmark 2015 decision legalizing same-sex marriage nationwide by rejecting an attempt by a former Kentucky county clerk to overturn the ruling. The justices, operating with a 6-3 conservative majority, declined to take up the controversial case, avoiding direct engagement with the issue three and a half years after overturning federal abortion rights.

The Court denied the appeal brought by former Rowan County clerk Kim Davis, who had been sued by a gay couple after refusing to issue them a marriage license following the 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges decision. Davis, an Apostolic Christian, contended that issuing licenses to same-sex couples conflicted with her religious beliefs.

Davis' appeal followed lower court rulings that rejected her argument that the First Amendment’s guarantee of free exercise of religion protected her from legal liability. Lower courts ultimately ordered Davis to pay more than US$360,000 in damages and attorney’s fees for violating the same-sex couple's constitutional right to marry.

The Supreme Court cited no grounds for its decision not to hear the case, which required fewer than four justices to vote in favor of granting review.

William Powell, an attorney representing the plaintiffs, stated, “The Supreme Court's refusal to review the decision confirms what we already knew: same-sex couples have a constitutional right to marry, and Kim Davis's denial of marriage licenses in defiance of Obergefell clearly violated that right.”

The 2015 Obergefell v. Hodges ruling was a historic victory for LGBTQ+ rights, declaring that the Constitution's guarantees of due process and equal protection under the law prohibit states from banning same-sex marriage. Justice Anthony Kennedy, now retired, wrote in the 5-4 majority opinion that gay individuals seeking marriage ask for “equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.”

Obergefell v. Hodges consolidated several lower court rulings from states like Ohio, Michigan, Kentucky, and Tennessee, which had bans on same-sex marriage or refused to recognize legal same-sex marriages performed elsewhere. In addition to legalizing same-sex marriage across all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories, the ruling extended all related marital benefits—including inheritance, taxation, health care access, adoption rights, and Social Security spousal benefits—to same-sex couples equally.

The Court’s denial of the case temporarily leaves the Obergefell precedent intact, a relief to proponents of same-sex marriage. However, the decision fueled immediate promises from conservative opponents to continue the legal fight.

Mat Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel, the conservative legal group representing Davis, called Monday's rejection “heartbreaking,” but vowed to press on. “We will continue to work to bring a case to the Supreme Court to overturn Obergefell,” Staver said, arguing the decision “has no basis in the Constitution.”

The Supreme Court’s 2022 decision to overturn Roe v. Wade, which established a constitutional right to abortion, had raised hopes among some conservatives that the Court’s current, more conservative configuration might revisit the Obergefell ruling next.