The California Supreme Court is expected on Thursday to release its decision on whether supporters of Proposition 8, California's voter-approved gay marriage ban, have legal standing to defend the amendment in federal court.

The court announced it would release its opinion on its website at 10AM.

At issue is whether Protect Marriage, the coalition of socially conservative groups which put Proposition 8 on the 2008 ballot and last year stepped in to appeal a federal judge's ruling declaring the law unconstitutional, has the legal right to defend the amendment in court after state officials refused to do so.

Chad Griffin, board president of the American Foundation for Equal Rights (AFER), the group formed specifically to challenge the constitutionality of Proposition 8, said no matter how the court rules his group wins.

“Here's the great news: No matter what happens, we win,” Griffin said in an email to supporters. “Either the Federal District Court ruling that declared Prop. 8 unconstitutional stands as is. Or, our case proceeds on its merits with the strong likelihood of reaching the U.S. Supreme Court. Because there is no reason to justify discrimination against gay and lesbian Americans, we are confident that the higher courts will affirm our District Court victory.”