ANDERSEN v. KING COUNTY

No. 75934-1, 75956-1.

138 P.3d 963 (2006)

Heather ANDERSEN and Leslie Christian; Peter Ilgenfritz and David Shull; Johanna Bender and Sherri Kokx; Janet Helson and Betty Lundquist; David Serkin-Poole and Michael Serkin-Poole; Vegavahini Subramaniam and Vaijayanthimala Nagarajan; Elizabeth Reis and Barbara Steele; and Michelle Esguerra; and Boo Torres De Esguera, Respondents, v. KING COUNTY; Ron Sims, King County Executive; and Dean Logan, King County Director of Records, Elections and Licensing Services Division, Appellants, State of Washington, Appellant, Senator Val Stevens; Representative Gigi Talcott; Coalition for Community Development and Renewal; Nuwanda Adams; Tracey Armstrong; Gerald Baker; Richard Blair; Ed Cook; Rick Danner, Sr.; Bill Demps; Harvey Drake; George Frost; Elvin Gladney; Aaron Haskins; Rick Kingham; Samuel K. Law; Jimmie W. Lee; Dan Magalei; Dana McClendon; Tony Morris; Nate Mullen; Paul Olver; Joseph Phillips; David Pierson; John Penton; Kenneth J. Ransfer, Sr; Willie C. Seals, Jr.; Paul Stoot; Washington Talaga; Daniel Villa; David Wallace; Thomas L. Westbrook; Doug Wheeler; Earnest Williams; Reggie Witherspoon; Nathaniel Wolf; Grant Zweigle; and Washington Evangelicals for Responsible Government, Appellants/Intervenors. Celia Castle and Brenda Bauer; Pamela Coffey and Valere Tibbett; Gary Murell and Michael Gyde; Christina Gamache and Judith Fleissner Kevin Chestnut and Curtis Crawford; Jeff Kingsbury and Alan Fuller; Lauri Conner and Leja Wright; Allan Henderson and John Berquist; Marge Ballack and Diane Lantz; Tom Duke and Phuoc Lam; and Kathy and Karrie Cunningham, Respondents, v. State of Washington, Appellant.

Supreme Court of Washington, En Banc.

Decided July 26, 2006.


Attorney(s) appearing for the Case

Steven T. O'Ban, Kristen Kellie Waggoner, Ellis Li & McKinstry PLLC, Seattle, Darren E. Carnell, Janine Elizabeth Joly, King County Pros Attorney, Seattle, William Berggren Collins, Attorney at Law, Highways Licenses Bldg Olympia, Kristofer John Bundy, King County Admin Bldg, Seattle, for Petitioner/Appellants.

Jennifer Suzanne Divine, Bradley H. Bagshaw, Helsell Fetterman LLP, Seattle, Patricia S. Novotny, Attorney at Law, Seattle, Nancy Lynn Sapiro, Lisa Marie Stone, Northwest Women's Law Center, Seattle, Jamie D. Pedersen, Matthew J. Segal, Paul J. Lawrence, Preston Gates & Ellis LLP, Seattle, Aaron Hugh Caplan, Attorney at Law, ACLU of Washington, Seattle, Roger Ashley Leishman, Davis Wright Tremaine, Seattle, Karolyn Ann Hicks, Stokes Lawrence PS, Seattle, for Appellee/Respondents.

Kathleen Phair Barnard, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae American Federation of Teachers et al.

Salvador Alejo Mungia, II, Gordon Thomas Honeywell, Tacoma, Colin Jeffrey Folawn, Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae American Psychological Ass'n.

Breean Lawrence Beggs, Center for Justice, Spokane, for Amicus Curiae Children's Rights Organizations.

Robert A. Free, Kathleen A. Wareham, Ester Frances Greenfield, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Compassion in Dying of Washington, et al.

Theresa Ann Schrempp, Sonkin & Schrempp PLLC, Bellevue, David Knox Dewolf, Gonzaga School of Law, Spokane, for Amicus Curiae Concerned Women for America.

Joshua K. Baker, Washington DC, Lincoln J. Miller, Roger D. Sherrard, Sherrard & McGonagle, Poulsbo, for Amicus Curiae Families Northwest.

P. Craig Beetham, Eisenhower & Carlson, Tacoma, for Amicus Curiae Family Law Practitioners.

Todd Michael Nelson, Ferring Nelson, LLP, Seattle, David R. Langdon, Langdon & Shafer, LLC, Cincinnati, Oh, for Amicus Curiae Family Research Council.

Nancy Dykes Isserlis, Winston & Cashatt, PS, Spokane, for Amicus Curiae Greater Seattle Business Ass'n.

Michael Richard Wrenn, Matthew Aaron Carvalho, Molly A. Terwilliger, Andrew Kamins, Heller Ehrman, LLP, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae History Scholars.

Nancy Dikes Isserlis, Winston & Cashatt, PS, Spokane, for Amicus Curiae, Inland Northwest Business Alliance.

Michael Richard Heath, Cairncross & Hempelmann PS, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Legal Marriage Alliance of Washington et al.

Suzanne J. Thomas, Law Offices of Suzanne J. Thomas, PS, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Libertarian Party of Washington State.

Suzanne J. Thomas, Law Offices of Suzanne J. Thomas, PS, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Log Cabin Republicans of Washington.

Karen M. McGaffey, Amanda J. Beane, Melissa Robertson, Kirstin S. Dodge, Perkins Coie LLC, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Loren Miller Bar Ass'n et al.

Monte N. Stewart, William C. Duncan, Marriage Law Foundation, Provo, Ut, Don Edward Powell, Richland, for Amicus Curiae Marriage Law Foundation.

David L. Donnan, Washington Appellate Project, Vanessa Soriano Power, Stoel Rives LLP, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Multifaith Works Religious Coalition for Equality et al.

Lindsay Taylor Thompson, Thompson Gipe, PC, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Pride Foundation et al.

Lisa Ellen Brodoff, Seattle University Peterson Law Clinic, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Senior Services of Seattle/King County.

Lisa Ellen Brodoff, Seattle University Peterson Law Clinic, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Services & Advocacy for Gay Lesbian et al.

Hugh Davidson Spitzer, Foster Pepper PLLC, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae State Legislators, Representatives, and Senators.

Kenneth Duane VanDerhoef, Seattle, Richard G. Wilkins, Provo, UT, Paul Benjamin Linton, Northbrook, ILL, for Amicus Curiae, United Families International.

Salvador Alejo Mungia, II, Gordon Thomas Honeywell, Tacoma, Colin Jeffrey Folawn, Schwabe Williamson & Wyatt, Seattle, for Amicus Curiae Washington State Psychological Ass'n.

Beth A. Bloom, Frank Freed Subit & Thomas, Seattle, Ellizabeth L. Rosenblatt, Douglas NeJaime, Irell & Manella, LLP, Los Angeles, Jennifer K. Brown, Deborah A. Widiss, Legal Momentum, New York, NY, for Amicus Curiae Women's Organizations.


MADSEN, J.

¶ 1 The trial courts in these consolidated cases held that the provisions of Washington's 1998 Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) that prohibit same-sex marriages are facially unconstitutional under the privileges and immunities and due process clauses of the Washington State Constitution. King County and the State of Washington have appealed. The plaintiffs-respondents, gay and lesbian couples, renew their constitutional arguments made to the trial courts...

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