Goldberg On Calif. Supreme Court Ruling on Same-Sex Marriage

 

 

May 14, 2008 (NEW YORK) – Columbia Law School Professor Suzanne Goldberg, an expert on sex and gender law, and Professor Nate Persily, a constitutional law expert, are available to speak with reporters about the implications of Thursday’s expected decision by the California Supreme Court in six marriage cases, collectively called In re Marriage Cases, S147999.

 

The cases look at whether California’s statutory ban on marriage between two persons of the same sex violates the California Constitution by denying equal protection of the laws on the basis of sexual orientation or sex, by infringing on the fundamental right to marry, or by denying the right to privacy and freedom of expression.

 

 

GOLDBERG: “California is the gatekeeper for civil marriage in the nation’s most populous state. The California Supreme Court holds the key to insuring that the state respects its own equality guarantee when it authorizes couples to marry.” 

 

 

 

Suzanne Goldberg, a Clinical Professor of Law at Columbia Law School, is also director of Columbia’s Sexuality and Gender Law Clinic. Under Professor Goldberg’s guidance, students work on a range of projects, from constitutional litigation and legislative advocacy to educational outreach and immigration assistance. Through the broad scope of its work, clinic students have had the opportunity to serve both individual and organizational clients, and collectively have devoted over 8,000 hours to cases relating to sexuality and gender law. Last year, the clinic helped secure asylum for a gay man from Jamaica and a lesbian woman from Turkmenistan.

 

Nathaniel Persily, an expert on voting rights, election law, constitutional law, and American politics, has co-edited a new book, Public Opinion and Constitutional Controversy, which takes an innovative approach to measuring how greatly U.S. Supreme Court decisions mold American public opinion. Such hot button issues as desegregation, school prayer, abortion, the death penalty, gender equality, affirmative action, flag burning, gay rights, the right to die and the war on terror and its impact on civil liberties are covered.

 

Columbia Law School, founded in 1858, stands at the forefront of legal education and of the law in a global society. Columbia Law School joins traditional strengths in international and comparative law, constitutional law, administrative law, business law and human rights law with pioneering work in the areas of intellectual property, digital technology, sexuality and gender, and criminal law.