SALT LAKE CITY — The 10th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has announced that the same judges will hear Utah and Oklahoma’s cases involving same-sex marriage.
In an order released by the federal appeals court on Tuesday, the court said the same panel of judges would consider the two states’ cases involving same-sex marriage bans. However, the cases would not be joined.
The decision was made at the request of the Tulsa County Clerk, Sally Howe Smith.
The 10th Circuit Court of Appeals did allow parties interested in the same-sex marriage cases to file what is known as “friend of the court” briefs to apply in both cases.
Last month, a federal judge here in Utah declared Amendment 3, which bans same-sex marriage, to be unconstitutional. For 17 days, same-sex couples married in the state until the U.S. Supreme Court granted a request for a stay by the Utah Attorney General’s Office.The first filing from outside counsel hired by the Utah Attorney General’s Office is due next week.
