SAN FRANCISCO — The country’s largest consumer bankruptcy court has ruled that the federal law prohibiting same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.
The Los Angeles-based federal court made the ruling Monday in the case of a gay couple seeking to file a joint bankruptcy petition. The couple wed during the 2008 window when same-sex marriage was briefly legal in California.
A Justice Department lawyer wanted the petition dismissed, citing the Defense of Marriage Act, which limits marriage to a man and a woman.
The Obama administration has said it believes the act is unconstitutional but opposed the couple’s petition to give Congress a chance to intervene in the case. Congress failed to respond.
U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Thomas Donovan wrote Monday that the Defense of Marriage Act violates equal-protection laws. He allowed the couple to file a joint petition. The Associated Press
