NY’s Highest Court Hears Argument on Gay Marriage

From the New York Times today:

As the issue of gay marriage finally reached New York State’s highest court on Wednesday, the six judges who heard the passionate arguments from both sides put forth a fundamental question: Has marriage been defined by history, culture and tradition since the dawn of Western civilization, or is it an evolving social institution that should change with the times?

During the two and a half hours of oral argument, the judges on the Court of Appeals grappled with essential questions of social values, asking tough questions without tipping their hands as to their ultimate decision.

They wanted to know whether there were studies showing that children raised by mothers and fathers turned out better than those raised by same-sex couples, and they wanted to know whether opening the door to gay marriage would also open the door to bigamy or polygamy.

They wanted to know whether asking the courts to rewrite New York State’s marriage laws was a way of letting the State Legislature escape responsibility for taking a position on a social controversy.

The full New York Times article is here.    The Brief of Amici Curiae New York Law Professors, including Feminist Law Profs Nan  Hunter, Sylvia Law, Liz Schneider,  Ruthann Robson, Amy Adler, Laura Appleman, Caitlin Borgmann, Carlin Meyer, Jenny Rivera, Darren Rosenblum and me, is available here.

– Posted by Bridget Crawford