Court upholds Tennessee’s marriage law

August 20, 2014

A Tennessee circuit court has upheld the state’s definition of marriage as the union of a man and a woman.

Judge Russell Simmons ruled that “Tennessee’s laws concerning same-sex marriage do not violate the equal-protection clause or the US Constitution” and that “neither the Federal Government nor another state should be allowed to dictate to Tennessee what has traditionally been a state’s responsibility.”

Marriage Unique for a Reason, an initiative of the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops, described the decision as the “first win for marriage in court since US v. Windsor,” the 2013 Supreme Court decision that struck down the Defense of Marriage Act.

 

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Further information:

• Tennessee Law Upheld (Marriage Unique for a Reason)
• In Tennessee, A Rare Win For Opponents of Same-Sex Marriage (Religion Clause)