ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û

The ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û of Pennsylvania, the ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û, and volunteer counsel from the law firm of Hangley Aronchick Segal Pudlin & Schiller have filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of 21 Pennsylvanians who wish to marry in Pennsylvania or want the Commonwealth to recognize their out-of-state marriages. The lawsuit alleges that Pennsylvania's Defense of Marriage Act and refusal to marry lesbian and gay couples or recognize their out-of-state marriages violates the fundamental right to marry as well as the Equal Protection Clause of the Fourteenth Amendment.

Whether the Defense of Marriage Act violates equal protection by denying married gay couples recognition under federal law.

On behalf of nine Illinois couples seeking recognition for their shared love and commitment, the ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û and the ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û of Illinois have filed a lawsuit to challenge the constitutionality of Illinois' law that denies gay and lesbian couples the freedom to marry. Currently, Illinois law excludes gay and lesbian couples from the recognition and protections that come with the universally recognized relationship status of marriage, and limits them instead to a separate civil union status.

Six same-sex couples, represented by the ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û, the ÀÏ°ÄÃÅ¿ª½±½á¹û of New Mexico, the National Center for Lesbian Rights (NCLR) and Albuquerque law firm Sutin, Thayer & Browne, APC, filed a lawsuit against the State of New Mexico and the Santa Fe and Bernalillo County Clerks seeking the freedom to marry. The lawsuit argues that the New Mexico marriage statutes and the New Mexico Constitution do not bar same-sex couples from marrying, and that the New Mexico Constitution requires the state to allow same-sex couples the freedom to marry.