US: Tennessee judge refuses to halt order to recognise three same-sex marriages
A Tennessee judge has refused to stay a ruling ordering the state to recognise some same-sex marriages.
After the state’s governor gave notice that he was to appeal the ruling, it was expected that Judge Trauger would grant a stay, meaning the marriages could not be recognised until the conclusion of the appeal.
However, the judge has instead refused to grant a stay, noting that recognising the marriages before appeal is unlikely to harm “because the plaintiffs are likely to succeed”, while “harms to the plaintiffs from continued enforcement of the Anti-Recognition Laws would be substantial and irreparable”.
She also noted that so far the ruling does not “not open the floodgates for same-sex couples to marry in Tennessee”, merely ordering the states to recognise three marriages immediately.
Rulings in favour of same-sex marriage are currently stayed in four states, where opponents could drag out lengthy appeals processes.
