News Archive

Two IU McKinney alums and a faculty member are part of a team of attorneys representing several gay couples married out of state in Lee v. Pence, which along with Baskin v. Bogan and Fujii v. Pence, were decided on June 26 by U.S. District Court Judge Richard Young. Judge Young ruled that Indiana’s refusal to grant or recognize same-sex marriage violates the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process and Equal Protection Clauses, thus clearing the way for same-sex couples to be married in Indiana. IU McKinney Professor Robert Katz; William R. Groth, ’75; Mark W. Sniderman, '06; Karen Celestino-Horseman, and Kathleen M. Sweeney comprised the attorney team.

According to Professor Katz, “Those who oppose state recognition of same sex marriage have a civic duty to explain their reasons for doing so, and the reasons must do more than recite the doctrines of their church. The avalanche of decisions like Lee v. Pence reflects the fact that opponents of same sex marriage have not justified their opposition before the bar of public reason -- despite ample opportunity to do so. As a practical matter, many or most religious conservatives will continue to reject same-sex relationships as contrary to Divine will or Natural Law – just as many regard premarital sex, contracepted sex, etc., as morally wrong. In the future, more religious individuals and groups may come to see the importance of distinguishing between civil or state-sanctioned marriage and religious or church-sanctioned (or mosque or synagogue-sanctioned etc.) marriage."