The cases were appealed to the Supreme Court after the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit found marriage bans constitutional on November 6, 2014. The appeals judges’ ruling overturned all lower court decisions granted in the cases.

Marriage equality is the law of the land in 35 states, and same-sex couples are allowed to marry in some districts of Kansas and Missouri. These four cases headed to the nation’s highest court pave the way for a possible decision ruling marriage equality is a fundamental right in all 50 states.

There is no question about it: the Supreme Court must rule now and for the last time in favor of the fundamental right to marry for all gay and lesbian Americans.

• Marriage equality is now the law of the land in Virginia, Utah, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Indiana and an additional 27 million Americans are extended the freedom to marry.

In light of the Supreme Court news, Colorado’s Republican Attorney General John Suthers dropped his defense of the state’s marriage ban and mandated that all county clerks begin issuing marriage licenses to gay and lesbian couples.

“There are no remaining legal requirements that prevent same-sex couples from legally marrying in Colorado. Beginning today, Colorado’s 64 county clerks are legally required to issue licenses to same-sex couples who request them.”

• Now, 25 states have the freedom to marry.

• Over 52% of Americans live in a state with marriage equality.

• The victories in the 4th, 7th, and 10th Circuits will now stand as precedent for all ongoing marriage equality litigation in states under those Circuits’ jurisdictions.

• Therefore, marriage equality will soon be the law of the land in 30 states including Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia, and Wyoming.

• That would mean 60% of Americans will live in a state with marriage equality.

Furthermore, following the Court’s news, Missouri’s Democrat Attorney General Chris Koster announced the state would not appeal a recent state court decision which requires Missouri to recognize the lawful marriages of same-sex couples.

“At a time when Missouri is competing to attract the nation’s premier businesses and most talented employees, we should not demand that certain individuals surrender their marriage licenses in order to live and work among us. Missouri’s future will be one of inclusion, not exclusion.”

Marriages for gay and lesbian couples in Virginia have begun!

The Supreme Court has denied the defendants’ requests to hear oral argument on their claims against the freedom to marry. With that, the Fourth Circuit’s ruling which struck down Virginia’s ban on marriage stands and gay and lesbian couples can begin marrying in the state soon. Same-sex couples who have been lawfully married and their families will also be recognized by their state government.

For information on how to get married in Virginia, visit this page >

“This is a momentous victory for the constitutional promise of equality, dignity and justice for all Americans,” said Theodore B. Olson, Plaintiff’s lead co-counsel. “Today, I am proud to call myself a Virginian. With the Commonwealth’s discriminatory marriage ban finally and conclusively struck down, we are one giant step closer to the day that all Americans, not just Virginians, can enjoy their right to marriage equality under the law.”

The Supreme Court also denied requests for review from defendants in cases from Utah, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Indiana. Marriage equality will be the law of the land in those states as well with today’s order. That means another 27 million Americans now enjoy the freedom to marry, and now over 52% of the U.S. population lives in a state with marriage equality.

The pro-marriage equality decisions of the 4th Circuit, 10th Circuit (Utah, Oklahoma), and the 7th Circuit (Wisconsin, Indiana) will stand and be precedential for all cases pending in states which fall under those circuits’ jurisdictions. Marriage equality could also soon come to Colorado, Kansas, North Carolina, South Carolina, West Virginia, and Wyoming as a result.

“A majority of Americans, more than 30 state and federal courts, scores of political and religious leaders, countless Fortune 500 Companies, and our President have all long believed in the promise of equality for gay and lesbian Americans,” said AFER Executive Director Adam Umhoefer. “While today brings justice to 5 more states, there are still 24 states that treat their gay and lesbian neighbors like second-class citizens. We hope that the Supreme Court’s order today will lead to all 50 states enjoying the freedom to marry very soon.”

Today’s Supreme Court decision is yet another historic victory in the fight for full federal marriage equality.

Over 70 cases are still pending in 26 states and Puerto Rico where the fundamental rights of gay and lesbian couples and their families are being denied. Today’s victory signals that those discriminatory marriage bans are indefensible under the law.

Conference Call Audio:

SUPREME COURT ORDERS LIST >

PRESS RELEASE >

Today, at their first private conference of the new term, the Supreme Court justices will consider whether to review the question of marriage equality once again this coming year.

Currently, there are 7 petitions for writ of certiorari, or requests for review, from 5 different cases including AFER’s Virginia case, Bostic v. Schaefer. The Justices may decide to hear one case, multiple cases, or may hold off on the issue all together. An affirmative vote by 4 Justices is needed to grant a petition.

Be the first to find out what the Supreme Court decides. Sign up for breaking news updates from AFER.

The Court is expected to release an Orders List by October 6, 2014 that will indicate which – if any – marriage equality case it will consider. The Court may also table the cases and not list them on any Orders List until they have come to a conclusion on whether to consider a case.

AFER has brought together two of the nation’s most prestigious lawyers, Ted Olson and David Boies, to fight for marriage equality for all Americans. They represent two loving couples – Tim Bostic & Tony London of Norfolk and Carol Schall & Mary Townley of Richmond. Ted and David and the AFER team successfully defeated Proposition 8 and restored marriage equality in California with a first-of-its-kind victory at the Supreme Court last year.

If the Supreme Court decides to review the Bostic case, the Justices will decide whether Virginia’s discriminatory marriage laws violate the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The Justices will also consider which level of scrutiny must be applied to cases involving LGBT discrimination.

AFER has achieved victories in two federal courts in Virginia, and the legal team, plaintiffs, and entire AFER team are prepared to defend those historic wins once again – this time at the nation’s highest court.

The outcome of the court’s decision, should they take a case, will be exceedingly precedential for the over 70 marriage equality cases pending nationwide and the most historic marriage victory since Loving v. Virginia which struck down marriage bans for interracial couples in 1967.

In addition to Bostic v. Schaefer, the following cases are being considered for review: Kitchen v. Herbert (Utah), Bishop v. Smith (Oklahoma), Wolf v. Walker (Wisconsin), and Baskin v. Bogan (Indiana).

AFER just received word from the U.S. Supreme Court that it will discuss whether to hear appeals in Bostic v. Schaefer, our federal constitutional challenge to Virginia’s discriminatory marriage ban, at its private Conference on Monday, September 29.

The court will also consider the four other cases challenging marriage bans from Utah, Oklahoma, Wisconsin, and Indiana.

Be the first to find out what the Supreme Court decides. Sign up for breaking news updates from AFER.

“Gay and lesbian couples in Virginia should not have to wait another day to enjoy their right to marry,” said AFER Executive Director, Adam Umhoefer. “The distribution of our case for the Court’s consideration brings us one step closer to our mission of marriage equality for all Americans. Our Constitution’s guarantee of liberty and equality soon will be realized for all loving and committed couples, no matter what state they reside in.”

The Court is expected to release an Orders List on October 6, 2014, that will indicate which – if any – marriage equality case or cases it will consider for its 2014-2015 term.

The Supreme Court has the option to grant multiple marriage cases, grant only one, delay consideration of any cases, or deny all of them. Should the Court grant review in Bostic, the Justices will go on to consider whether Virginia’s marriage ban violates the Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

If the Court denies review in Bostic, the July 2014 decision of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit that struck down Virginia’s marriage ban will be binding and gay and lesbian Virginians will be able to marry in the Commonwealth.

Find out what happens next >

As of Tuesday afternoon, September 9, 2014, 7 petitions for writ of certiorari, or requests for review, have been filed with the United States Supreme Court in 5 separate marriage equality cases around the country.

On Tuesday morning, lawyers for the states of Wisconsin and Indiana filed their formal petitions with the high court appealing Monday’s ruling from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit which ruled the states’ marriage bans unconstitutional. Those cases join AFER’s Virginia Bostic case as well as cases from Utah and Oklahoma which are now all ready to be considered for review at the justices’ first private conference on September 29, 2014.

The Supreme Court must grant review of the marriage equality question so that loving same-sex couples across the country may be extended the promise of freedom and equality enshrined in the Constitution of the United States.

The Justices will hold a series of private conferences throughout the next term to determine which cases they will hear. With 7 petitions for review before the court, and many more expected to arrive, it is evident that national resolution must be reached on the freedom to marry.

The Supreme Court has the option to grant multiple marriage cases, grant only one, delay consideration of any cases, or deny all of them.

Each of the 5 cases before the high court have garnered marriage equality victories for their respective state, yet the plaintiffs of each case agree the Supreme Court must review the merits of their arguments and answer the question of marriage equality once and for all.

READ AFER URGES SUPREME COURT TO REVIEW BOSTIC CASE:

Today, AFER filed a response to the Commonwealth’s petition for review with the Supreme Court urging the high court to take up the Bostic case and rule in favor of marriage equality once and for all.

“This case is about justice and about redeeming the constitutional guarantee of equality for countless gay and lesbian couples that has been denied for far too long,” said Adam Umhoefer, executive director of American Foundation for Equal Rights. “Since AFER’s founding, we have looked toward a day when all Americans, gay or straight, can marry the person they love. We have successfully argued in favor of marriage equality once before at the Supreme Court and restored the freedom to marry in California. We are prepared to argue the case for freedom and equality for all couples across the nation, and the Supreme Court must rule in favor of the fundamental right to marry for all Americans.”

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring, on behalf of Registrar of Vital Records Janet Rainey, filed its petition for writ of certiorari, or request for review, on Friday, August 8, 2014.

Clerk of Court for Norfolk Circuit Court George E. Schaefer filed a second petition on Friday, August 22, 2014.

Though our plaintiffs have won in both the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia and in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, both the state and plaintiff parties agree that the Bostic case presents an incredibly important constitutional question which must be answered immediately.

Marriages for gay and lesbian couples were set to begin in Virginia on Thursday, August 21, 2014, but the Supreme Court issued an emergency stay in light of the petitions for writ of certiorari being filed with the court.

Should the Supreme Court choose to review the Bostic case, the stay will remain in place until the case has been fully briefed, argued, and decided by the Justices.

An appeal to the Supreme Court is costly. With your support, we can continue our fight until every gay and lesbian couple can enjoy the fundamental freedom to marry.

READ THE BRIEF

On Friday, August 8, 2014 the Commonwealth of Virginia asked the United States Supreme Court to review the federal appeals court ruling in Bostic v. Schaefer (docketed as Rainey v. Bostic) that found Virginia’s discriminatory Marriage Amendment unconstitutional. Two weeks later, on Friday, August 22, George E. Schaefer, one of the County Clerks defending the marriage ban, filed his own petition with the high court.

Virginia’s Marriage Amendment has been ruled unconstitutional twice: first in a U.S. District Court and then by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.

Defendants’ request for Supreme Court review, known as a petition for a writ of certiorari, is only granted upon an affirmative vote of four Supreme Court Justices.

The next Supreme Court term will begin in late September, 2014. A Supreme Court Term usually runs until late June or early July. Of the approximately 8,000 cases that appear on the Court’s docket each Term, the Justices hear and decide only between 70 and 80 cases after full briefing and oral argument.

Throughout the Term, the Justices meet almost every week in a private conference. At each conference, they consider more than 130 requests to review judgments of state and federal courts. When four Supreme Court Justices vote in favor of granting full review of a case, know as granting certiorari, the case is placed on the Court’s oral argument calendar.

Donate $25, $50, or more to help Ted Olson, David Boies, and the rest of our legal team continue to defend our victories in Virginia and bring marriage equality to the Commonwealth once and for all.

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Scenario 1: Supreme Court Hears the Bostic Case

Should the Court decide to hear our case in the next term, AFER’s legal team, led by distinguished co-counsel Theodore B. Olson and David Boies, will make the case for the fundamental right to marry for all Americans. Oral argument would likely be scheduled for early 2015, and a final decision would be issued by July 2015.

Scenario 2: Supreme Court Does Not Hear the Bostic Case

The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals’ decision that ruled Virginia’s Marriage Amendment unconstitutional would go into effect as soon as that Court issues its final mandate, which would likely be several days after the Supreme Court denies review. As soon as it does, gay and lesbian Virginians would finally have the freedom to marry.

* The Court may also hold the case for later consideration.

Virginia Petition for Writ of Certiorari:

Clerk of Court for Norfolk Circuit Court George E. Schaefer Petition:

On Wednesday, August 20, 2014, the United States Supreme Court granted an emergency request to stay, or delay implementation of, the 4^th Circuit Court’s decision that found Virginia’s marriage ban unconstitutional.

Marriages for gay and lesbian couples were set to begin at 8 a.m. on Thursday, August 21, 2014, after the 4^th Circuit Court denied an initial request to stay that mandate. Now, the Supreme Court’s stay prevents marriages from taking place pending further legal questions in the case.

Lawyers for the Bostic plaintiffs will ask the Supreme Court to review the Bostic case so that the nation’s high court can rule on marriage equality once and for all and extend equality and freedom to all gay and lesbian couples and their families.

The Supreme Court has been asked by the state of Virginia to take up the Bostic case in its next term to decide the question of marriage equality once and for all. The state filed its petition for writ of certiorari, or request for review, on Friday, August 8, 2014. The Bostic plaintiffs will acquiesce to that request in hopes that the Supreme Court will finally answer the imperative constitutional question at hand.

Should the court take the case for review, the stay issued today will remain in place until the case has been fully briefed, argued, and decided by the high court.

If the Supreme Court does not grant review of the Bostic case, it is expected the stay will be lifted and couples will be able to marry in Virginia at that time.

READ THE ORDER HERE >

Chief Justice John Roberts, the Supreme Court justice responsible for emergency requests made within the 4th Circuit, asked on Friday morning that the Bostic plaintiffs respond to the clerk’s petition.

Clerk McQuigg has asked the Supreme Court to stay the mandate. What happens next?

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The plaintiffs have until Monday, August 18 at 5pm ET to file that document, and then Chief Justice Roberts will have until Thursday morning, August 21, at 8am to make his decision regarding the stay request.

In the event that the Supreme Court does not issue a stay, the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals will issue a mandate by Thursday morning, and marriages will begin in Virginia immediately thereafter.

It is noted in Clerk McQuigg’s filing that Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring agrees a stay should be implemented until the Supreme Court decides whether or not it will review the Bostic case and decide on marriage equality once and for all. Herring, on behalf of State Registrar of Vital Records Janet Rainey, filed that request on August 8, 2014.

Read the request to stay the mandate: