Legislation - Pending

None.

Legislation - Enacted

None.

NOTE: 10 February 2015, talk about regression! Brownback rescinds executive order that offered protections on basis of sexual orientation - Then-Gov. Kathleen Sebelius, a Democrat, signed order in 2007 - By Jonathan Shorman, The Topeka Capitol Journal/cjonline.com

Lawsuits - Pending

Marie v. Moser

Case #: 14-3246 (10th Circuit); 2:14-cv-02518 (Federal District Court)
Court Level: 10th Circuit Court of Appeals
Date Filed: 10 October 2014
Date of Appeal: 5 November 2014

Description:

• 10 October 2014, the ACLU filed a marriage lawsuit in federal court. Kansas is in the 10th Circuit, so this federal district court is bound by the decisions in Utah's Kitchen and Oklahoma's Bishop. 
• 13 October 2014, the plaintiffs filed a brief in support of a Motion for Preliminary Injunction and Temporary Restraining Order.
• 18 October 2014, the plaintiffs filed a Memo addressing why the federal court should be acting now.
• 20 October 2014, a hearing was scheduled for 24 October 2014: 
  • "NOTICE of Hearing: THIS IS AN OFFICIAL NOTICE FOR THIS HEARING 3 Plaintiff's Motion for Temporary Restraining Order. Motion Hearing set for 10/24/2014 at 10:00 AM in KC Courtroom (Unknown) before District Judge Daniel D. Crabtree. (This is a TEXT ENTRY ONLY. There is no .pdf document associated with this entry.) (mig) (Entered: 10/20/2014)"
• 22 October 2014, Phillip and Sandra Unruh, a straight couple and  "legally married residents of the State of Kansas," asked to intervene in this case as defendants. 
• 23 October 2014, Same-Sex Marriage Is Theft Of Different-Sex Marriage Says Straight Couple In Federal Court Filing - The New Civil Rights Movement article by David Badash.
• 23 October 2014, the state filed its Opposition to a preliminary injunction. 
• 23 October 2014, the October 24th hearing was cancelled. Per the report, the plaintiffs attorney said they had not had time to review the state's filing from today. Also per the report, Judge Crabtree is considering whether to reschedule the hearing or make a decision based on briefs already filed. A telephone conference was held.
• 24 October 2014, a Minute entry for Oct. 23rd telephone conference was filed. Plaintiffs are to file any additional briefing on the motion for preliminary injunction by Monday, 27 October 2014.
• 24 October 2014, the Uhruhs' motion to intervene was denied, but they will be permitted to file an amicus brief.
• 26 October 2014, the Westboro Baptist Church filed to intervene. 
• Westboro Baptist Church seeks to defend Kansas marriage ban - By Chris Johnson, Washington Blade, 26 October 2014
• 27 October 2014, the plaintiffs' filed their Reply in support of Preliminary Injunction or Temporary Retraining Order.
• 28 October 2014, a hearing was set on the plaintiffs' motion for Preliminary Injunction / TRO. The hearing will take place in Kansas City on Friday, 31 October 2014, at 2:30 pm CT (text only order, no PDF). 
• 28 October 2014, though denied intervenor standing, Phillip and Sandra Unruh were granted permission to file an amicus brief in this case, and here it is, opposing preliminary injunction. 
• 30 October 2014, exhibits were submitted by the defendants in further support of their opposition to a preliminary injunction.
• 31 October 2014, hearing in Kansas City at 2:30pm CT.
• 4 November 2014, Judge Crabtree GRANTED the preliminary injunction! The order temporarily stayed the injunction until Tuesday, 11 November 2014 at 5:00pm CT, "unless defendants sooner inform the Court they will not seek review before the Court of Appeals."
• 4 November 2014, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt issued a statement indicating the state will appeal to the 10th Circuit, asking the Court to consider the appeal en banc.
• 5 November 2014, the defendants filed their notice of appeal to the 10th Circuit.
• 6 November 2014, the defendants filed a Motion for a stay of the preliminary injunction.
• 7 November 2014, the plaintiffs filed their opposition to the stay of the preliminary injunction.
• 7 November 2014, the 10th Circuit denied the state's request for a stay pending appeal. The district court stay due to expire on November 11 remains in place.
• 7 November 2014, Kansas asked the 10th Circuit to grant initial hearing en banc.
• 7 November 2014, the Court called for response to the motion by November 21st.
• 7 November 2014, Judge Crabtree denied the Westboro Baptist Church's motion to intevene.
• 7 November 2014, the Unruhs appealed their denial of intervention.
• 9 November 2014, the WBC appealed the denial of their request to intervene. 
• 10 November 2014, Kansas filed an Emergency Application to Stay Preliminary Injunction Pending Appeal. 
• 10 November 2014, Justice Sotomayor halted the Kansas marriages pending further order, and called for responses by 11 November 2014 at 5:00pm ET.
• 11 November 2014, the plaintiffs filed their Opposition to Emergency Application to Stay of Preliminary Injunction.
• 12 November 2014, Supreme Court DENIED the Stay! Woot!
• 13 November 2014, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt explains his stance on same-sex marriage ruling - By Brad Cooper, The Kansas City Star
• 17 November 2014, Chief Judge A.J. Wachter issued an order covering the 11th Judicial District of Cherokee, Crawford and Labette counties in Kansas - AP, LGBTQNATION
• 17 November 2014, Kansas has 105 counties, but only a handful are issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples - By Hunter Schwarz, The Washington Post 
• 18 November 2014, State Defendant Robert Moser filed his Answer to Complaint. NOTE: The previous federal order that struck down the ban is a preliminary injunction. The case will still need to proceed to a final decision and judgment.
• 20 November 2014, the ACLU plans to amend this lawsuit in order to force state agencies to recognize same-sex marriages. ACLU of Kansas Legal Director Doug Bonney "said the ACLU would amend the lawsuit against the state to include more agencies because of the state’s reluctance to grant legally married same-sex couples the same rights that newly married heterosexual couples would receive. “'We’re trying to figure out who we sue, including possibly the governor,' Bonney said Thursday. 'We’re very concerned about the state’s refusal to recognize marriages both performed in state and out of state, so we definitely will seek to amend our complaint to add these claims, because this can’t go on.'”
• 29 November 2014, OMG, Westboro Baptist Church asks to intervene in case. Again.
• 2 December 2014, the 10th Circuit denied Kansas' motion for initial hearing en banc.
• 8 December 2014, the plaintiffs filed a Motion for Preliminary Injunction on marriage recognition claims and a memo in support of the motion.
• 10 December 2014, defendant Robert Moser filed a Motion to Dismiss. Robert Moser, M.D., resigned his position as Secretary of the Kansas Department of Health and Environment, effective 30 November 2014. He moves to dismiss the claims against him based on "lack of subject matter jurisdiction under the Eleventh Amendment, lack of Article III standing, and mootness of the supposed controversy." He also claims that his successor would not be a proper defendant.
• 13 December 2014, the Westboro Baptist Church filed an Amicus Brief Opposing Plaintiffs' Second Motion for Preliminary Injunction.
• 18 December 2014, Judge Crabtree denied Westboro Baptist Church's second motion to intervene.
• 20 December 2014, WBC filed an Amended Notice of Appeal as to denial of their second motion to intervene.
• 22 December 2014, the plaintiffs filed their Oppositions to Motions form the defendants to Dismiss the Amended Complaint. Opposition to Moser's Motion and Opposition to Court Clerks' Motion.
• 29 December 2014, the WBC filed their Opening Brief in their appeal of the denial of intervention.
• 31 December 2014, here's the Minute entry from today's telephone conference. Parties to exchange stipulations of fact, responses, and then file report with court with proposed briefing schedule by 30 January 2015. 
• 31 December 2014, Federal judge moves to speed up ruling in Kansas same-sex marriage suit - By John Hanna, AP, via LGBTQNation
• 5 January 2015, the defendants Moser and the Douglas and Sedgwick County Clerks filed their Replies in support of their motions to dismiss.
• 20 January 2015, a Motion to Dismiss was filed by state defendants Nick Jordan, Lisa Kaspar, and Mike Michael.
• 22 January 2015, Judge Crabtree set a phone status conference for Tuesday, 27 January 2015. Docket text order only: "NOTICE of Hearing: THIS IS AN OFFICIAL NOTICE FOR THIS HEARING Telephone Status Conference set for 1/27/2015 at 09:30 AM in Courtroom 401 (DDC) before District Judge Daniel D. Crabtree."
• 27 January 2015, minute entry from telephone conference. Not much here except that the plaintiffs have withdrawn a second motion for preliminary injunction that was filed on 12/8, after the first preliminary injunction was issued.
• 28 January 2015, the defendant-appellants filed their Opening Brief with the 10th Circuit.
• 30 January 2015, the parties filed a Joint Report Regarding Scheduling. The plaintiffs' attorneys indicated their intention to file a motion for summary judgment soon.
• 6 February 2015, the plaintiffs filed their Opposition to the motion to dismiss filed by the "recognition defendants" who were added in the amended complaint. 
• 13 February 2015, the plaintiffs filed a Motion for Summary Judgment on all claims, and a Memo in Support of the motion.
• 15 February 2015, amicus brief from the WBC opposing summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs. 
• 20 February 2015, defendants Jordan, Kaspar, and Michael filed a reply in support of their motion to dismiss.
• 23 February 2015, a Scheduling Order was filed.
• 27 February 2015, the State defendants filed a motion to have the deadline extended for a response to the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgement.
• 27 February 2015, the County defendants filed a motion, and a memo in support of the motion, to stay discovery and other pretrial activities pending ... everything. 
• 28 February 2015, the plaintiffs filed their opposition to the State defendants' motion to extend the time to respond.
• 4 March 2015, the State defendants filed their Reply in support of extending the deadline to respond to summary judgment.
• 5 March 2015, the plaintiffs filed a Notice of Supplemental Authority.
• 6 March 2015, State defendants filed their Response to Summary Judgement.
• 6 March 2015, County defendants asked for additional time to respond until the Court rules on their motion to stay and motion to dismiss.
• 9 March 2015, the plaintiffs filed their Opposition to staying discovery and other pretrial activities.
• 10 March 2015, the plaintiffs filed their Opposition to the clerks' motion to extend the due date for clerks' response to motion for summary judgment.
• 17 March 2015, an Order was filed that denied several motions to delay proceedings. The Court ordered all defendants to file a consolidated response to plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment no later than 13 April 2015.
• 19 March 2015, the defendants filed their Reply brief.
• 13 April 2015, the defendants filed their Opposition to the plaintiffs' motion for summary judgment, and Supplemental Exhibits. For reference here is the plaintiffs' memo with a statement of material facts.
• 27 April 2015, the plaintiffs' filed their Reply in support of summary judgment on all claims.
• 9 July 2015, Kansas says it is voluntarily complying with the Obergefell decision and therefore the case should be dismissed as moot.
• 14 July 2015, the plaintiffs filed their Opposition to Suggestion of Mootness and Motion to Dismiss.
• 16 July 2015, the plaintiffs filed a notice of Supplemental Authority.
• 21 July 2015, the defendants filed their Reply in support of Suggestion of Mootness and Motion to Dismiss.
• 22 July 2015, the defendants filed their Response to the plaintiffs' Supplemental Authority.

Michael Nelson, et al. v. KS Department of Revenue

Case #: 13-C1465
Court Level: State Trial Court
Date Filed: 30 December 2013
Date of Appeal:

Description:

• 30 December 2013, two legally married same-sex couples sued for the right to file joint state income tax returns.
• Kansas filed a motion and memo in support of summary judgment on 2 May 2014.
• A hearing was scheduled for 11 July 2014.

Lawsuits - Resolved

State of Kansas v. Moriarty

Case #: 112,590
Court Level: State Supreme Court
Date Filed: 10 October 2014
Date of Ruling: 18 November 2014

Description:

• 8 October 2014, Johnson County District Judge Kevin P. Moriarty issued an administrative order allowing same-sex couples to marry in the county.
• 10 October 2014, Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt asked the Kansas Supreme Court to stop same-sex couples’ marriages in Johnson County.
• 5 November 2014, the Court ordered the parties to show cause - responses due by 5:00pm on 14 November 2014.
• 10 November 2014, still waiting for the parties' responses to the order to show cause issued by the State Supreme Court on 5 November 2014. Those responses are due 14 November 2014. In the meantime, Judge Moriarty asked for the temporary stay to be lifted and the state responded.
• 14 November 2014, Respondents Judge Moriarty and Clerk McCurdy filed their response to the Court's Order to Show Cause.
• 18 November 2014, the Kansas Supreme Court lifted the temporary stay that blocked issuance of marriage licenses in Johnson County. Woot!

Ballot Initiatives - Pending

None.

Ballot Initiatives - Passed

None.

Polls

• 29 July 2014, results from the latest Bluegrass Poll show 50% of registered voters in Kentucky oppose same-sex marriage, while 37% favor it and 12% remain unsure. That's a drop from the 55% who said they opposed gay marriage in February 2014 and a sharp decline from the 72% that voted in favor of a ban in 2004 — when the state constitution was amended to define marriage as between a man and a woman. News Source
• 24 February 2014, Public Policy Polling released results of a poll showing only 29% support for a proposed law allowing individuals and businesses to refuse service to same-sex couples. 59% opposed. Opinion still remained divided over same-sex marriage. 44% of voters thought same-sex marriage should be allowed, compared to 48% who thought it should not be. Only 32% of voters rejected both marriage and civil unions and even a majority of Republicans (55%) favored either marriage or civil unions. Poll Details
• 27 February 2013, Public Policy Polling released results of a poll showing that support for same-sex couples continued to grow in Kansas, with 63% of voters saying they support either marriage or civil union for same-sex couples, and 34% of respondents opposed to any legal family status for gay couples. Poll Details