Justices Reject Appeal in Landmark Challenge to Obergefell Ruling
WASHINGTON, D.C. — The U.S. Supreme Court on Monday declined to hear Kim Davis v. Ermold, effectively ending a decade-long legal battle over the former Kentucky clerk’s refusal to issue same-sex marriage licenses after the Obergefell v. Hodges decision.
The denial leaves intact a Sixth Circuit ruling that found Davis personally liable for damages after she refused to issue licenses in 2015, citing her religious beliefs. Davis and her legal team, represented by Liberty Counsel, had hoped the Court would revisit the Obergefell precedent and affirm broader First Amendment protections for people of faith in public service.
The History
- After Obergefell legalized same-sex marriage nationwide, Davis stopped issuing all marriage licenses in Rowan County to avoid violating her conscience.
- She was jailed for six days for contempt of court and later sued by couples who claimed emotional distress.
- Kentucky later changed its laws, removing clerks’ names from marriage licenses—a measure Davis had sought from the beginning.
The legal fight
Davis’ petition raised two questions:
- Whether a public official sued in a personal capacity can invoke the First Amendment as a defense.
- Whether Obergefell v. Hodges was wrongly decided and should be overturned.
The Court’s refusal to hear the case leaves standing a $360,000 damages award against Davis.
What they’re saying
Mat Staver, founder and chairman of Liberty Counsel, called the decision “a missed opportunity to correct one of the Court’s most egregious errors,” arguing that Obergefell, like Roe v. Wade, “has no basis in the Constitution.”
The decision signals that, for now, the Supreme Court is unwilling to reopen the Obergefell debate—even as religious liberty clashes with LGBTQ rights continue to surface in courts across the country.
