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yesthattomAt 3pm today the NJ Supreme Court will announce their decision on whether or not same-sex marriage will be legally recognized in New Jersey. It’s something I’ve been working on (on and off) for 15 years.
They might decide that the constitution requires it (i.e. in brief: the constitution says that the Law Against Discrimination must be upheld in all areas; the LAD was modified to include glbt in 1991; therefore glbt people can’t be discriminated against in marriage). If this happens, we’ll need to codify this decision in the legislature (i.e. pass a law legalizing it so that there is no confusion or need for further interpretation by the courts).
They might decide that the constitution doesn’t require it. If this happens there will be a push to codify this decision in the legislature (i.e. pass a law clearly stating that it is illegal, which is a no-op since that was the status quo), plus another push to legalize same-sex marriage since all other avenues have been exhausted.
They might “do a Vermont” and decide that same-sex relationships have to be recognized but that it doesn’t have to be called “marriage” and the legislature has x months to pass a law creating something that is seperate but equal.
Either way, this is going to be a rocky next couple of months!
I’ll be updating The New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition’s web site right at 3pm. As luck would have it, I’m teaching a class at 4-5pm today so no updates during that time.
They might decide that the constitution requires it (i.e. in brief: the constitution says that the Law Against Discrimination must be upheld in all areas; the LAD was modified to include glbt in 1991; therefore glbt people can’t be discriminated against in marriage). If this happens, we’ll need to codify this decision in the legislature (i.e. pass a law legalizing it so that there is no confusion or need for further interpretation by the courts).
They might decide that the constitution doesn’t require it. If this happens there will be a push to codify this decision in the legislature (i.e. pass a law clearly stating that it is illegal, which is a no-op since that was the status quo), plus another push to legalize same-sex marriage since all other avenues have been exhausted.
They might “do a Vermont” and decide that same-sex relationships have to be recognized but that it doesn’t have to be called “marriage” and the legislature has x months to pass a law creating something that is seperate but equal.
Either way, this is going to be a rocky next couple of months!
I’ll be updating The New Jersey Lesbian and Gay Coalition’s web site right at 3pm. As luck would have it, I’m teaching a class at 4-5pm today so no updates during that time.
