Updated at 11:33 a.m.
Same-sex marriages are legal again in Alaska. The U.S. Supreme Court denied the state a stay, which would have halted the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples until the 9th Circuit Court heard the state’s appeal early next year.
The week has been a legal ping-pong match. The Alaska District Court overturned the state’s same-sex marriage ban on Sunday. Couples began applying for licenses on Monday and three couples were allowed to wed immediately. As others sat out the mandatory three-day waiting period, the state was granted a temporary stay by the 9th Circuit Court on Wednesday.
That stay was lifted this morning at 11 am when the Supreme Court denied the request. Same-sex couples can receive marriage licences when state courts and offices re-open on Monday. Today is a state holiday.
The 9th Circuit will hear the state’s appeal early next year. The state must file their brief by late January 2015.
Original version:
Same-sex marriages are back on in Alaska. The U.S. Supreme Court denied the state a stay, which would have halted the issuance of marriage licenses to same-sex couples until the 9th Circuit Court heard the state’s appeal early next year.
It’s a state holiday, so couples who applied for licenses earlier this week will have to wait until Monday to pick them up. Three couples in rural Alaska were married on Monday when judges expedited their cases. Others had to wait the mandatory 3-day waiting period. The process was delayed when the 9th Circuit issued a temporary stay until the Supreme Court made the final decision.
The state’s same-sex marriage ban was overturned by a federal judge on Sunday.