OBERGEFELL

VS
HODGES
BY: BAYLON & DEPOSITARIO
Facts

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petitioners 3
petitioners 4
State officials responsible for
enforcing the laws in question
respondents

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All the petitioners brought cases
in their respective District Courts
Cases came from:
 Michigan
 Kentucky
 Ohio
 Tennessee

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 Petitioners claim the respondents
violate the Fourteenth Amendment:
“… nor shall any state deprive
any person of life, liberty, or
property, without due process of
law; nor deny to any person within
its jurisdiction the equal protection
of the laws.”

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Challenging:
 denial of their right to marry
 right to have their marriage
recognized in their own state
Respondents claim that
petitioners want a “right to
same-sex marriage” as opposed
to “right to marry”

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In each case, the relevant Dist.
Court found in favor of the
petitioner.

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The respondents appealed
decisions against them to the US
Court of Appeals for the Sixth
Circuit.
Consolidated the cases and
reversed the judgment of the
District courts.

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Reason:
A state has no constitutional
obligation to license same-sex
marriages or to recognize same-
sex marriages performed out of
state.

The petitioners sought certiorari.

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 Issues
&
RULINGS

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1. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex;

― YES. The Fourteenth Amendment requires

a State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex.

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1. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex;
Four reasons:
1. The right to personal choice regarding
marriage is inherent in the concept of
individual autonomy. The nature of
marriage is that, through its enduring bond,
two persons together can find other
freedoms, such as expression, intimacy, and
spirituality. This is true for all persons,
whatever their sexual orientation.

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1. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex;.
Four reasons:
2. Right to marry is fundamental because it
supports a two-person union unlike any
other in its importance to the committed
individuals. Right to marry is one of the
fundamental liberties protected by the 14th
Amendment. –Due Process Clause

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1. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex;.
Four reasons:
3. Protecting the right to marry is that it
safeguards children and families. Without
the recognition, stability, and predictability
same-sex marriage offers, their children
suffer the stigma of knowing their families
are somehow lesser. An ability, desire, or
promise to procreate is not and has not
been a prerequisite for a valid marriage in
any state. –Equal Protection Clause
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1. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to license a marriage between two
people of the same sex;.
Four reasons:
4. One cannot deny same-sex couples the
right to marry as this violates their liberty as
persons and puts them in an unfair state
where they cannot enjoy the same rights
being accorded to heterosexual married
couples.

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2. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to recognize the same-sex marriage
licensed and performed in a state which does
not grant that right.

― YES. The Fourteenth Amendment requires

States to recognize same- sex marriages
validly performed in a State which grants it.

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2. WON the Fourteenth Amendment requires a
State to recognize the same-sex marriage
licensed and performed in a state which does
not grant that right.

― Since same-sex couples may now

exercise the fundamental right to marry in
all States, there is no lawful basis for a State
to refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex
marriage performed in another State on
the ground of its same-sex character.

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APPLICATION
to
NATURAL LAW

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Uses of Natural Law:
Justificatory Use
― The petitioners, through strong personal
conviction, rallied together in order to
support the claim of their inherent right
to marry under the 14th Amendment
regardless of one’s sexual orientation.

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Uses of Natural Law:
Opposite Use
― Disobedience to the application of the
14th Amendment which excludes same
sex couples from marrying.

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Uses of Natural Law:
Regulatory Use
― lex injusta non est lex or “unjust law is
not law” can be seen in the
condemnation of excluding same-sex
couples from marrying under the 14th
Amendment.

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Uses of Natural Law:
Interpretative Use
― Within the spirit or purpose of the 14th
Amendment is the right to marry being
a fundamental right inherent in the
liberty of the person regardless of one’s
sexual orientation.

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Self-evident Precepts of Natural Law:
a. Justice
― Under the Due Process and Equal
Protection clauses of the 14th
Amendment, couples of the same-sex
are entitled to that right and that
liberty.

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Self-evident Precepts of Natural Law:
b. Equality
― Choosing to marry someone from the
same gender does not deem a person
less human than those who choose to
marry from the opposite gender.

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Self-evident Precepts of Natural Law:
c. Fairness
― There must be no partiality, prejudice,
or favoritism in applying the 14th
Amendment.

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Dissenting application of Natural Law:
3rd Basic Inclination of Man
“To preserve the species, that is, to
unite sexually”
― Although not applicable in this case of
one’s right to marry, the incapability to
procreate is still a long-time argument
against the legalizing of same-sex
unions.

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Finish na:)

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