Word: olson
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...Worrying about the political implications for his party as it tries to redefine itself "wouldn't be fair to my clients," Olson said. "But we do hope to make the point that on matters of human decency, human rights, individual rights, fairness, due process and equal rights - for God's sake, these are not liberal or conservative issues ... This issue is not something that should be tearing us apart. It should be bringing us together. A respect for individual liberties is an essential part of being conservative...
...what if Olson and Boies lose? History could remember the pair for two historic moments in constitutional law: the ruling that made George W. Bush President in 2000, and helping to establish precedent that could set back efforts to win gay marriage for a generation. Both men acknowledge the risks, but believe the time is right...
...minimizing the obstacles," Olson told TIME. But he said federal courts already have powerful, and friendly, precedents. The right to marry whom one pleases was called a fundamental right, protected by the due process clause of the Constitution, in 1967, in the Supreme Court's landmark ruling in Virginia v. Loving that struck down state laws banning interracial marriage. Olson and Boies argue that two other big federal cases have laid the groundwork for the Supreme Court, despite its conservative makeup: Romer v. Evans, which in 1996 struck down a statewide ballot measure in Colorado that had barred cities from...
...Still, those arguments are hardly novel. Gay-rights lawyers and others have made that case for years, but have always avoided bringing it to federal court for fear of an unfriendly reception. But Olson told TIME that their approach will also seek to leverage powerful reasoning in the small but growing number of state supreme court decisions that favor gay marriage, from California's sweeping decision last year that spurred on the Prop 8 movement to Iowa's 2009 decision, with its lengthy rebuttal of religious-based arguments against gay marriage...
...Court ruling upholding Prop 8, gay-rights activists and others have vowed to put the issue of gay marriage back in front of voters, perhaps by as early as 2010. If they win, gay marriages will resume - a big victory for the movement, but one that would likely halt Olson and Boies' case in its tracks. Since all four plaintiffs in the federal suit are Californians, a victory at the polls would mean they have no claim to pursue...