https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2025/nov/07/supreme-court-same-sex-marriageThe US supreme court on Friday is considering taking up a case that could challenge the legality of same-sex marriage across the country.
Hours after ruling that Donald Trump’s administration can block transgender and non-binary people from selecting passport sex markers that align with their gender identity, the justices are holding their first conference on the Davis v Ermold case. While their deliberations are typically kept private, the court may announce whether it will take the case as early as Monday.
The case involves Kim Davis, a former Kentucky county clerk who, in 2015, became a cause celebre for religious opposition to same-sex marriage after the US supreme court legalized the practice in the Obergefell v Hodges case. Davis repeatedly refused to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples and, at the height of her fame, was even briefly jailed for contempt of court.
Two men, David Ermold and David Moore, sued Davis after she refused to give them a marriage license. After a trial, a jury awarded the couple $100,000 in damages. Davis appealed that decision, arguing that her conduct was protected by the first amendment’s guarantee of free exercise of religion.
The US court of appeals for the sixth circuit, however, rejected that argument in March of this year. Because Davis was operating within her capacity as a government official, she was not entitled to first amendment protections, the judges ruled.
