|
 Of the 11 cases left to decide, the biggest are a challenge by gay
couples to state laws banning same-sex marriage and a conservative
challenge to subsidies provided under the Obamacare law to help low-
and middle-income people buy health insurance that could lead to
millions of people losing medical coverage.
Many legal experts predict the court will legalize gay marriage
nationwide by finding that the U.S. Constitution's guarantees of
equal treatment under the law and due process prohibit states from
banning same-sex nuptials.
The four liberal justices are expected to support same-sex marriage,
and conservative Justice Anthony Kennedy, the expected swing vote,
has a history of backing gay rights.
In three key decisions since 1996, Kennedy has broadened the court's
view of equality for gays. The most recent was a 2013 case in which
the court struck down a federal law denying benefits to married
same-sex couples.
 During oral arguments in the gay marriage case on April 28, Kennedy
posed tough questions to lawyers from both sides but stressed the
nobility and dignity of same-sex couples.
The healthcare decision is tougher to call. Chief Justice John
Roberts, the swing vote when the court upheld Obamacare in 2012,
said little during the March 4 oral argument to indicate how he will
vote.
The court will issue some rulings on Monday, with more likely later
in the week.
For the justices, the pressure is on to have the rulings ready. That
can be difficult as the cases in which they are closely divided are
generally the ones left until the end.
Outside the court, those with a stake in the outcome of the rulings
are left anxiously waiting.
James Obergefell, one of the plaintiffs in the gay marriage case,
said he will be at the court for all the remaining decision days.
[to top of second column] |
Obergefell sued Ohio, challenging its ban on same-sex marriages,
after the state refused to acknowledge his marriage to John Arthur
on Arthur's death certificate. They were married in Maryland, a
state that allows gay marriages, just months before Arthur died in
2013.
The Supreme Court does not announce in advance which rulings will be
issued on any given day.
"It's nerve-racking, it's exciting, but it's also scary," Obergefell
said while waiting in line to enter the courtroom on Thursday.
On the other side of the issue, the Alliance Defending Freedom, a
conservative Christian group that opposes gay marriage, will have at
least two attorneys in the courtroom, spokeswoman Kerri Kupec said.
As for the closed-door deliberations at the court, Justice Ruth
Bader Ginsburg hinted during a June 12 speech at the turmoil to
come. "Sharp divisions, one can confidently predict, will rise in
the term's final weeks," Ginsburg said.
Prior to June 15, the court was split 5-4 in only seven of the 46
cases decided at that point. But last week alone, four of the nine
rulings were 5-4 decisions. In the rulings, several justices wrote
separate opinions in which they aimed pointed comments at their
colleagues.
(Reporting by Lawrence Hurley; Editing by Will Dunham)
[© 2015 Thomson Reuters. All rights
reserved.]
Copyright 2015 Reuters. All rights reserved. This material may not be published,
broadcast, rewritten or redistributed. |
