California court backs ban on same-sex marriages
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SAN FRANCISCO, Oct 5 - A California appeals court upheld on Thursday the state's ban on same-sex marriage, reversing a lower court's judgment against a voter-approved law defining marriage as the union of a man and a woman.
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BOSTON - A state judge upheld a 1913 law that prohibits out-of-state gay couples from marrying in Massachusetts, where same-sex marriage between residents has been legal since May.    The eight couples who filed the lawsuit - from Connecticut, Rhode Island, New Hampshire, Vermont, Maine and New York - sought a preliminary injunction blocking enforcement of the statute, claiming it is inherently discriminatory...
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The Supreme Court of Canada gave the  federal government the go-ahead on Thursday to legalize gay  marriage, prompting Prime Minister Paul Martin to announce  plans to introduce a redefinition of marriage early next year.
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SAN FRANCISCO - Laws limiting marriage to a man and a woman do not run afoul of California's constitution, Attorney General Bill Lockyer declared Friday in a long-awaited legal opinion that sought to avoid offending either side in the gay marriage debate.    In answering two lawsuits seeking to put California on par with Massachusetts, where gay marriage is legal, Lockyer said it was up to voters or the Legislature to decide whether to change "the common and traditional understanding" of matrimony that "pre-dates the founding of this state or nation."  "There is simply no deeply rooted tradition of same-sex marriage in California or in any other state," he said, while acknowledging that "committed and loving relationships between two individuals deserve recognition under California law."   The lawsuits claim California's marriage laws violate the state constitution's anti-discrimination provisions, an argument Lockyer rejected in the 37-page brief...
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A controversial law that would give gay and lesbian couples the same right to marry, divorce and adopt children as heterosexuals was approved by Spain&#39;s Socialist government Friday.
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The Louisiana Supreme Court on Wednesday reinstated the anti-gay marriage amendment to the state constitution that was overwhelmingly approved by voters in September.
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In a landmark ruling, Israel's Supreme Court ordered the government Tuesday to recognize same-sex marriages performed abroad.
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A California law barring gay  marriage violates the state's constitution because it inhibits  freedom of expression and undermines privacy, lawyers for the  city of San Francisco argued in court on Wednesday.
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The US Supreme Court on Monday chose not to hear a challenge on same-sex marriage from Massachusetts, the only state where it&#39;s legal.
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The state Supreme Court announced it would issue a long-awaited ruling Wednesday in a case that could make Washington only the second state to allow gay marriage.
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A Massachusetts Superior Court judge   ruled on Friday that a lesbian couple from Rhode Island could   marry in Massachusetts because Rhode Island does not have a law   specifically banning it.
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Louisiana voters on Saturday  overwhelmingly approved an amendment to the state constitution  banning gay marriages and civil unions.
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Maryland's highest court ruled on Tuesday that marriage is between a man and a woman, overturning a lower court ruling and dashing the hopes of nine same-sex couples who wanted legal protection for long-term partners.
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The Virginia Supreme Court on Friday struck down an archaic and rarely enforced state law prohibiting sex between unmarried people.
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California's marriage laws do not violate the constitutional rights of gays and lesbians, a state appeals court ruled Thursday.
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Washington - The US Supreme Court on Monday rejected a challenge to Massachusetts&#39; gay marriage law, leaving intact a state court ruling that has led to thousands of weddings for same-sex couples and a national debate on the issue.
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OTTAWA (CP) - There is no need for the Supreme Court to rule on the legality of same-sex marriage because it's already been decided, a national gay and lesbian group argued Wednesday.