The Wisconsin Supreme Court has
rejected a legal challenge to the state's gay partner law, the AP
reported.
Opponents of the law argue that
Governor Jim Doyle's gay-inclusive domestic partnership is
unconstitutional because it violates the state's constitutional
amendment banning marriage and civil unions for gay and lesbian
couples.
Doyle, a Democrat, lobbied for the
legislation that extends a limited number of protections for gay
couples when he tucked away the provision inside his biannual state
budget approved by lawmakers. Most of the 43 rights granted to
couples center around estate planning and hospital visitation issues.
More than 900 couples have applied for the benefits since the law's
August 3 start.
Opponents took heart in the fact that
the court offered no explanation in its order and quickly announced
they would refile their challenge in a lower court.
The group Wisconsin Family Action
(WFA), which supported passage of the anti-gay marriage amendment as
the Family Research Institute and is being represented by the
Christian-based Alliance Defense Fund (ADF), said the court's
decision “implies nothing about the merits of the constitutional
challenge.”
Wisconsin Attorney General John Byron
“J.B.” Van Hollen has refused to defend the law, calling it
unconstitutional, forcing the state to hire attorney Lester Pines to
defend the policy.
The registry made Wisconsin the first
state with a constitutional amendment banning gay marriage to
recognize the unions of gay and lesbian couples.