Michigan Attorney General requests 15-judge appeals court panel for same-sex marriage case
The attorney general in the US state of Michigan has asked for all fifteen appeals court judges to sit on an appeals panel in a case challenging the state’s same-sex marriage ban.
Last month US District Judge Bernard Friedman ruled that the state’s voter-approved same-sex marriage ban was unconstitutional, a decision which attorney general Bill Schuette immediately appealed.
A stay was then put on the ruling by the 6th Circuit Court of appeals, leaving 300+ Michigan gay and lesbian couples who married in the interim in a legal limbo, pending the state’s appeal.
Rather than a three-judge panel for the appeals process, Schuette has requested the full 15 judges from the court, known as an ‘en banc’ hearing, to consider the case.
“This is a way to get a swifter, more thoughtful or complete review by all the judges,” Schuette said in a statement.
He claims it will save taxpayers’ money, as the full panel would be required later in the process anyway.
