PoliticsPoliticsDefense of Marriage Actvirginia-gay-marriage

Virginia Gay Marriage Class Action Lawsuit Gets Certified By Federal Judge

Judge Certifies Class Action Status For Virginia Gay Marriage Lawsuit
Reuters
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By Gary Robertson

RICHMOND, Va., Feb 1 (Reuters) - A federal judge in western Virginia has certified as a class action a lawsuit filed by two Shenandoah Valley couples challenging the state's ban on same-sex marriages.

Friday's order adds to growing momentum to end the state's prohibition of same-sex marriage, with Virginia's new attorney general saying his office will no longer defend the ban.

U.S. District Court Judge Michael Urbanski said in the order that same-sex couples seeking to marry in the state as well as those married in states where gay marriage is legal could challenge Virginia's ban as a group.

Lawyers for the couples who filed the lawsuit estimate that there are about 15,000 same-sex households in Virginia, based on U.S. Census data.

The lawsuit seeks a declaratory judgment striking down Virginia's same-sex marriage laws and a permanent injunction barring their enforcement.

At the request of two same-sex couples involved in a parallel lawsuit in federal court in Norfolk, Urbanski's order excludes them from the class action to avoid interfering with their case.

Attorney General Mark Herring, a Democrat, said his decision not to defend the ban was aimed at putting Virginia "on the right side of history" and ending its legacy of opposing landmark civil rights rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court.

Republicans in Virginia's House of Delegates, who have threatened to impeach Herring, are trying to push through a bill that would permit them to hire their own counsel to defend the marriage ban. But even if approved, the bill would probably be vetoed by the Democratic Governor Terry McAuliffe.

The Virginia attorney general's decision not to defend the ban follows two Supreme Court rulings last year.

One struck down the Defense of Marriage Act, a law that denied federal benefits to legally married same-sex couples.

The other paved the way for gay marriage to resume in California. But those rulings did not address whether state bans on same-sex marriage were constitutional.

In 2006, 57 percent of Virginians voted in favor of the state's constitutional amendment prohibiting same sex marriages.

But a poll released last October by Virginia's Christopher Newport University showed that 56 percent of likely voters opposed the ban, and 36 percent favored it.

Seventeen states plus the District of Columbia recognize same-sex marriage, including eight states where it became legal in 2013. Thirty-three ban gay couples from marrying by state constitutional amendment, statute or both. (Reporting by Gary Robertson; Editing by Jon Herskovitz; Editing by Lisa Von Ahn)

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Before You Go

Gay Marriage In The United States
New York(01 of17)
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New York lawmakers legalized same-sex marriage on July 24, 2011, making it the largest state at the time to pass such legislation. (credit:Flickr: alh1)
Maryland(02 of17)
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Voters in Maryland approved marriage equality in the November 2012 election.Initially, the gay marriage bill was signed into law by Gov. Martin O'Malley (D) on March 1, 2012, but opponents gathered enough signatures to force the issue back onto the ballot. With the passing of marriage equality, same-sex marriage ceremonies began on Jan. 1, 2013. (credit:AP)
Iowa(03 of17)
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Iowa's Supreme Court ruled the state's gay marriage ban unconstitutional on April 3, 2009. (credit:Getty)
Maine(04 of17)
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Maine made history in the November 2012 election when it became the first state to pass marriage equality on the ballot. Human Rights Campaign President Chad Griffin said, "Voters in Maine came to the common-sense conclusion that all people deserve the ability to make loving, lifelong commitments through marriage."Just three years ago, a popular vote overturned legislation that would have legalized same-sex marriage in the state. (credit:AP)
Massachusetts(05 of17)
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Massachusetts became the first state in the nation to legalize same-sex marriage on May 17, 2004. The state's Supreme Court initially found the ban on gay marriage unconstitutional on Nov. 18, 2003. (credit:AP)
New Hampshire(06 of17)
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Same-sex couples were able to begin seeking marriage licenses on Jan. 1, 2010. (credit:Flickr: jimbowen0306)
Vermont(07 of17)
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Vermont, which invented civil unions, became the first state to legalize gay marriage through a legislature's vote -- overriding the governor's veto. Same-sex couples were able to begin marrying on Sept, 1, 2009. (credit:Flickr: Tony Fischer Photography)
Washington D.C.(08 of17)
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Gay couples were able to begin marrying in the nation's capital on March 9, 2010. (credit:Flickr: Vox Efx)
California(09 of17)
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The state initially began conducting gay marriages on June 16, 2008. On November 5, 2008, however, California voters passed Proposition 8, which amended the state's constitution to declare marriage as only between a man and a woman.On June 26, 2013, by a 5-4 vote, the Supreme Court justices held in Hollingsworth v. Perry that the traditional marriage activists who put Proposition 8 on California ballots in 2008 did not have the constitutional authority, or standing, to defend the law in federal courts after the state refused to appeal its loss at trial, opening the door for marriages to resume in the state. (credit:AP)
Washington(10 of17)
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On February 13, 2012, Gov. Christine Gregoire (D) signed a law allowing same-sex marriage ceremonies to begin on June 7, 2012. The process was delayed by gay marriage opponents who gathered enough signatures to put the issue up to a state vote in November 2012.Gay marriage passed on November 7, 2012. The official determination for Washington did not come until one day after the election because of the state's mail-in voting system. (credit:AP)
Rhode Island(11 of17)
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Gay marriage came to Rhode Island when Governor Lincoln Chafee signed the marriage equality bill into law on May 2, 2013. (credit:AP)
Delaware(12 of17)
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Delaware obtained gay marriage when Governor Jack Markell signed the marriage equality bill it into law on May 7, 2013. (credit:Getty)
Minnesota(13 of17)
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Minnesota same-sex couples achieved marriage equality when Gov. Mark Dayton signed the legislation into law on May 14, 2013. (credit:AP)
New Jersey(14 of17)
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Newark Mayor Cory Booker began marrying same-sex couples at City Hall at 12:01 a.m. on Oct. 21, 2013. (credit:AP)
Hawaii(15 of17)
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Hawaii Gov. Neil Abercrombie signed same-sex marriage into law on Nov. 13, 2013, making it the 15th state to pass such legislation.
Illinois(16 of17)
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Illinois became the 16th state to legalize gay marriage, with the House having passed the bill on Nov. 5. and Gov. Pat Quinn signing the legislation on Nov. 20. (credit:AP)
New Mexico(17 of17)
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On Dec. 19, the New Mexico Supreme Court unanimously ruled that same-sex marriage rights are protected under the Constitution. (credit:Robert Alexander via Getty Images)
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