August 31, 2010 · A state appeals court in Dallas has overturned a lower court's decision that cleared the way for a "gay divorce."
Last year, Judge Tena Callahan ruled the men — married in Massachusetts — could legally divorce in Texas. The judge said the state's prohibition of same sex marriage violates the Constitution's 14th Amendment "equal protection" clause. The appeals court rejected that.
Peter Schulte is the attorney for one of the men.
Schulte: "This ruling today really doesn't give our clients the relief that they need: an actual divorce. Because as we move forward and the laws change in different states, avoidance action, we still believe, is not the way to go. And so we're going to keep pushing forward until we exhaust all of our legal avenues."
One appeals judge wrote that Texas district courts do not have subject-matter jurisdiction to hear a same sex divorce case.
The State Attorney General had intervened, arguing that because Texas doesn't recognized gay marriage, a Texas court cannot grant a divorce.
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