Kerrigan & Mock v. Connecticut Dept. of Public Health
From Judgepedia
Kerrigan & Mock v. Connecticut Dept. of Public Health is a Connecticut case about same-sex marriage that resulted in an October 2008 decision of the Connecticut Supreme Court asserting that according to the state's constitution, the state must allow same-sex couples to marry.
Connecticut thus joins California and Massachusetts as the three states to have legalized gay marriage; in each case, through a divided decision of the state's supreme court.
The Connecticut decision was handed down on a 4-3 vote. Justice Richard Palmer wrote the majority opinion. He was joined in the majority by Flemming Norcott, Joette Katz and Lubbie Harper. Chief Justice Chase Rogers and Justice Barry Schaller did not participate in the decision.
Justices David M. Bordon, Peter Zarella and Christine Vertefeuille each wrote dissenting opinions.[1]
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Background
On August 25, 2004, GLAD (Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders) filed suit against the Connecticut Department of Public Health and Dorothy Bean, the registrar in the town of Madison, Connecticut. The suit was filed on behalf of seven gay and lesbian Connecticut couples who had been denied marriage licenses in Madison. The plaintiff couples asserted in the suit that only the relationship of marriage would provide them with the protections and benefits they need to live securely as a family.
See also
- In re Marriage Cases, the May 15, 2008 decision of the California Supreme Court legalizing gay marriage in California.
- Goodridge v. Department of Public Health, the November 18, 2003 decision of Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court legalizing gay marriage in Massachusetts.
