The United States Supreme Court has decided to take up the case of same-sex marriage in 2015 and by June the issue could be decided once and for all.  The court will decide whether or not all 50 states should allow same-sex couples to marry and whether states should recognize marriages performed in places where it is legal. 

The case will take up the issue of a 6th Circuit Court November 2014 decision that ruled to uphold bans on gay marriage in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee.


 

The Background:

In June 2013, the United States Supreme Court ruled that the Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional and that to deny federal benefits to legally married same-sex couples violates the US constitution's guarantee of liberty and equal protection. Since the court's decision, the number of states allowing same-sex marriage has grown to 36. 

The 6th US Circuit Court of Appeals went against a national trend and decided to uphold bans on same-sex marriage in four states--Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee. The Supreme Court will hear petitions challenging this decision.

What Will be Decided?

The US Supreme Court will essentially decide two things:

1. Whether states are required to issue marriage licenses to couples of the same-sex.
2. Whether the 14th Amendment of the US Constitutions requires states to recognize lawful marriages from other states. 

When Will the Be Decided?

The court will likely begin to hear arguments in April 2015 and will likely issue a decision by June 2015.

What's at Stake?

Currently families who are legally married are denied rights in the states where they live, simply because their marriage was performed outside the state where they currently live.

Every aspect of a person's life from their job to their family can be impacted on the ability to have a legally recognized relationship. There are more than 1400 rights that come with legal marriage. The court will decide once and for all who is eligible for those rights. 

What is the likely outcome?

Although no one can predict the way the Supreme Court will vote, the court does have a history of following popular opinion. Today more than 70% of the American populations lives in a state where same-sex marriage is legal and polls in 2014 have indicated that somewhere between 48-59% of Americans support legalizing same-sex marriage.