hazlnut
06-18-2009, 12:54 PM
Federal gay marriage challenge has Hollywood style (http://www.reuters.com/article/domesticNews/idUSTRE55H2HW20090618)
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The story of two famous U.S. lawyers from opposite ends of the political spectrum banding together to launch a bold and unexpected fight for gay marriage sounds like it could have been written in Hollywood.
In many ways, it is.
A handful of political filmmakers led by a Democratic consultant have crafted a gay rights challenge they hope will reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
The case which has its first hearing in a federal San Francisco court on July 2 could quickly make gay marriage a national right, or, some veteran gay rights advocates fear, cripple the movement.
There is definitely a lot of drama here -- if it weren't for the names of the two lawyers leading the charge, this would be a much less interesting story. Nobody would care if it were two hack lawyers from orange county. But Olson and Boies have a history with the high court.
The federal judiciary is widely seen as conservative, and gay rights movement leaders have argued that a gradual approach to change public opinion and win in states would be crucial preparation for a challenge in the Supreme Court, which gauges public opinion in such morality-linked cases.
But with a swing vote in the nine-member Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy, already ruling in favor of gays in two important cases -- and no signs of court conservatives retiring soon -- the Los Angeles-based filmmaker group decided to act.
I don't know if this will reach the Supreme court -- someone has to challenge the 9th circuit's decision. And I'm not sure how long that process is.
SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) - The story of two famous U.S. lawyers from opposite ends of the political spectrum banding together to launch a bold and unexpected fight for gay marriage sounds like it could have been written in Hollywood.
In many ways, it is.
A handful of political filmmakers led by a Democratic consultant have crafted a gay rights challenge they hope will reach the U.S. Supreme Court.
The case which has its first hearing in a federal San Francisco court on July 2 could quickly make gay marriage a national right, or, some veteran gay rights advocates fear, cripple the movement.
There is definitely a lot of drama here -- if it weren't for the names of the two lawyers leading the charge, this would be a much less interesting story. Nobody would care if it were two hack lawyers from orange county. But Olson and Boies have a history with the high court.
The federal judiciary is widely seen as conservative, and gay rights movement leaders have argued that a gradual approach to change public opinion and win in states would be crucial preparation for a challenge in the Supreme Court, which gauges public opinion in such morality-linked cases.
But with a swing vote in the nine-member Supreme Court, Justice Anthony Kennedy, already ruling in favor of gays in two important cases -- and no signs of court conservatives retiring soon -- the Los Angeles-based filmmaker group decided to act.
I don't know if this will reach the Supreme court -- someone has to challenge the 9th circuit's decision. And I'm not sure how long that process is.