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Supreme Court Ruling On Gay Marriage Could Mean A Mess For Wyoming

The fate of Wyoming’s same-sex couples could be thrown into a legal limbo if the U.S. Supreme Court rules there is no constitutional right to gay marriage.

The Court is expected to issue a long-awaited ruling on gay marriage by early July at the latest, and most legal experts think they will find it is constitutionally guaranteed.

But if the courts find it is not, states like Wyoming that previously did not allow gay marriage may take steps to ban it once again. University of Wyoming law professor Stephen Feldman says legally, it's unknown territory.  

"What happens to the couples that have been married during the period when states did allow same-sex marriage?" he says. "I don’t think states can undo what has been done, but I don’t really know."

Feldman also points out that the decision that made same-sex marriage legal in Wyoming came from the 10th Circuit court. That court based its decision on same-sex marriage on an earlier decision by the Supreme Court. So if the Supreme Court rules against gay marriage in the next few weeks, Wyoming would probably have to petition the 10th Circuit to change its decision before the state could make any changes.

 

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