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| US court sceptical of federal law |
| US court sceptical of federal law on gay marriage
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| UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
, 27-March-2013
23:17:0 PM |
| The Supreme Court concluded two days of intense debate on gay marriage after suggesting it could strike down the law that prevents legally married gay couples from receiving a range of federal benefits that go to married people.
The court wrapped up its arguments on Wednesday over the federal Defence of Marriage Act that bans recognition of same-sex marriages in the U.S., affecting several benefits available to married couples, including survivor benefits and tax breaks.
Justice Anthony Kennedy - often the decisive vote in a divided court - joined the four more liberal justices in raising questions about the provision of the act that is being challenged in the Supreme Court.
The debate in the high court has garnered huge interest as polls show that public opinion in the United States has been leaning toward being in favour of gay marriage, though religious conservative still strongly oppose it. Thousands of people marched outside the Supreme Court building on Tuesday, loudly supporting one side or the other.
Same-sex marriage is legal in nine states and the district of Washington, while 12 others recognize "civil unions" or "domestic partnerships" that grant the same benefits without full rights of marriage. The other states ban gay marriage in their constitutions.
Kennedy said the law appears to intrude on the power of the states that have chosen to recognize same-sex marriages. Other justices said the law creates what Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg called two classes of marriage.
The federal law affects a range of benefits available to married couples, including tax breaks, survivor benefits and health insurance for spouses of federal employees.
Lower federal courts have struck down the section of the law that defines marriage as being between one man and one woman, and now the justices, in nearly two hours of scheduled argument, were considering whether to follow suit.
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