News

... but same-sex couples married in California when it was legal will be recognized. More soon.

UPDATE, 10;08 a.m.: One of the smartest talk shows around, KQED's "Forum," is discussing the decision this hour. Tune in.

UPDATE, 10:16 a.m.: The vote was 6-1, the LA Times reports.

UPDATE, 10:24 a.m.: State Supreme court site slammed -- mirror of the ruling here.

UPDATE, 10:31 a.m.: Holy shit -- 185 pages.

UPDATE, 10:39 a.m.: A guest on "Forum" (sorry, missed the name) underlines the following passage on page 149:

Disagreement over a single, newly recognized, contested application of a general principle does not mean the principle is dead. Equal protection’s continuing vitality in the present context is shown by this court’s unanimous reaffirmation of its conclusions in the Marriage Cases, supra, 43 Cal.4th 757, that laws discriminating on the basis of sexual orientation are subject to strict scrutiny, and that — excepting the name — same-sex couples are entitled to enjoy all of the rights of marriage. Accordingly, all three branches of state government continue to have the duty, within their respective spheres of operation, today as before the passage of Proposition 8, to eliminate the remaining important differences between marriage and domestic partnership, both in substance and perception.

So the ruling might not be as damning as it appears. The Forum guest's take is that it appears to be aimed at the word "marriage" -- that's it.