Federal Judge Aleta Trauger issued a preliminary injunction requiring the state to recognize the out-of-state marriages of three Tennessee couples. The ruling is limited to the plaintiffs, but Judge Trauger's injunction notes the likelihood that their case will succeed on its merits given the rulings we've seen over the past few years.
Here's the injunction. Especially noteworthy is the outline of the problems each of these couples face when their marriages are denied recognition.
This is a big day in Tennessee.
Though Judge Trauger points out that the law could evolve in a different direction, she notes:
In making its decision, the court must decide, among other things, whether the plaintiffs are likely to prevail on the merits of their claims, not that they have prevailed or that they necessarily will prevail on their claims. In other words, the court’s decision today simply reflects its best projection, based on the evidence and the existing state of the law, as to whether the plaintiffs are likely to win their case. Currently, all relevant federal authority indicates that the plaintiffs in this case are indeed likely to prevail on their claims that the Anti-Recognition Laws are unconstitutional.
I never thought I'd see this in my lifetime.