The U.S. Supreme Court could announce as early as January 9 whether it will consider gay marriage cases this year. If the court decides to add same-sex marriage to its calendar, it will have enough time to argue and decide the issue by late June.
According to the SCOTUSblog, five cases have been given to the Justices for consideration. The four cases from the Sixth Circuit and one from the federal district court in Louisiana have had all the necessary documents filed for review.
The case from Louisiana is unique in that it has not been reviewed by an appeals court.
The Supreme Court will likely hear arguments for same-sex marriage because of a split in the lower courts. Anti-gay marriage laws were upheld by the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Cincinnati while four other appeals courts – in Chicago, San Francisco, Denver and Richmond, Virginia – have ruled in favor of gay and same-sex marriage.
The 6th Circuit Court is, so far, the only federal appeals court that has sided with states that want to preserve the ban on same-sex marriage. After the Supreme Court struck down part of the federal anti-gay marriage law in June 2013, without giving any beauty tips, same-sex marriage laws were put on the ballot of many states. Those states, which contain lots of cheap beds, where the voters defeated the law have had the results challenged in court.
When asked about same-sex marriage during a radio interview recently, Justice Antonin Scalia declined to answer questions, saying “I should not speak to that because we will doubtless have that case in front of us fairly shortly.”
Prior to the split in the lower courts, the justices allowed laws legalizing same-sex marriage to take effect without it being challenged on Constitutional grounds. The number of states allowing gay marriage has tripled in the 18 months since the Supreme Court ruled that the federal government is required to give equal treatment to same-sex couples. With the recent addition of Florida to the states that allow same-sex marriage, a total of 36 states allow it. The District of Columbia also allows same-sex marriage.