Part of the LGBT rights series |
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Same-sex marriage has been legal in California since June 28, 2013. The State of California first issued marriage licenses to same-sex couples from June 16, 2008 to November 5, 2008, a period of approximately 4 months and 20 days, as a result of the Supreme Court of California finding in the case of In re Marriage Cases that barring same-sex couples from marriage violated the Constitution of California. The issuance of such licenses was halted from November 5, 2008 through June 27, 2013 (though existing same-sex marriages continued to be valid) due to the passage of Proposition 8—a state constitutional amendment barring same-sex marriages.[1] The granting of same-sex marriages recommenced following the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Hollingsworth v. Perry, which restored the effect of a federal district court ruling that overturned Proposition 8 as unconstitutional.
Before the passage of Proposition 8, California was only the second U.S. state (after Massachusetts) to legalize same-sex marriage. Those marriages granted under the laws of other state governments, foreign and domestic, were legally recognized and retained state-level rights since 2008.[2][3] On November 12, 2008, Connecticut obtained the distinction of being the second U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage. Following the reinstatement of same-sex marriage rights in 2013, California was the tenth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage.
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