As I write this on Sunday night, we await Monday morning at 9:00 am (MST) to see if Judge Shelby will offer a stay while his decision is appealed, and if he does not stay the decision, whether the 10th Circuit at large will then decree a stay or not.
The decision to allow same-sex marriage in Utah came as a shock and a bombshell, because none of us had been paying close enough attention to realize that the court case was ripe for decision. I read that there are some 20 or 30 other court cases working their way through US federal and state courts in various stages, but how many others are at the stage where judicial decisions are ready to be made?
I expect other cases will ensure that other states will join Utah within the next few months or perhaps weeks. While the past year was a time when same-sex marriage was extended largely though legislatures and ballots (Washington, Maine, Maryland, Rhode Island, Delaware, Minnesota, Hawaii, and Illinois; plus court cases in California [uS Supreme Court], New Jersey [state supreme court], and New Mexico [state supreme court]), the coming year looks more likely to see extension mostly through judicial action. There's the possibility of ballot initiatives in Oregon, Ohio, Arizona, and maybe a couple of other states, but none of that can happen until November election time.
So what other court cases have already had hearings? What cases have hearings scheduled this winter and are likely to be decided by early-blossom-time? Is there any website that has aggregated this information? Many thanks to anyone who can direct me to the data (or perhaps we will have to assemble the list here)...
--Rigel