Strauss v. Horton

Strauss v. Horton
Supreme Court of California
Argued March 5, 2009 Decided May 26, 2009
Full case name	Karen L. Strauss et al., Petitioners, v. Mark B. Horton et al.
Citation(s)	46 Cal.4th 364 93 Cal.Rptr.3d 591 207 P.3d 48
Holding
The Amendment to the State Constitution referred to as Proposition 8 is valid and enforceable from the moment it was passed. It cannot be applied to retroactively annul marriages that were transacted while the practice was legal in the State of California.
Court membership
Chief Justice	Ronald M. George
Associate Justices	Marvin R. Baxter Ming W. Chin • Carol A. Corrigan Joyce L. Kennard • Carlos R. Moreno Kathryn Mickle Werdegar
Case opinions
Majority	George, joined by Kennard, Baxter, Chin, Corrigan
Concurrence	Kennard
Concurrence	Werdegar
Concur/dissent	Moreno

Strauss v. Horton, 46 Cal. 4th 364, 93 Cal. Rptr. 3d 591, 207 P.3d 48 (2009), was a decision of the Supreme Court of California, the state's highest court. It resulted from lawsuits that challenged the voters' adoption of Proposition 8 on November 4, 2008, which amended the Constitution of California to outlaw same-sex marriage. Several gay couples and governmental entities filed the lawsuits in California state trial courts. The Supreme Court of California agreed to hear appeals in three of the cases and consolidated them so they would be considered and decided. The supreme court heard oral argument in the cases in San Francisco on March 5, 2009. Justice Kathryn Mickle Werdegar stated that the cases will set precedent in California because "no previous case had presented the question of whether [a ballot] initiative could be used to take away fundamental rights".^[1]

The court announced its decision on May 26, 2009.^[2] The decision held that Proposition 8 was valid as adopted by the voters, but that marriages performed before Proposition 8 went into effect would remain valid. On June 26, 2013, Strauss v. Horton was mooted by Hollingsworth v. Perry.^[3]