| Pedersen at al. v. Office of Personnel Management | |
|---|---|
| United States District Court for the District of Connecticut | |
| Judge sitting | Vanessa L. Bryant |
| Keywords | |
| Defense of Marriage Act, Equal protection, Same-sex marriage, State's rights | |
Pedersen et al. v. Office of Personnel Management is a lawsuit filed on November 9, 2010, in the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut. The plaintiff in the suit challenges the constitutionality of section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA), which defines the terms "marriage" as "a legal union between one man and one woman as husband and wife" and "spouse" as "a person of the opposite sex who is a husband or a wife."[1]
Gay and Lesbian Advocates and Defenders (GLAD) filed Pedersen v. O.P.M. in District Court in Connecticut on behalf of same-sex couples in Connecticut, Vermont, and New Hampshire, making the same arguments it made in Gill v. Office of Personnel Management. The complaint argues that Section 3 of the Defense of Marriage Act should be found unconstitutional based on the Fifth Amendment, equal protection, and the federal government's historically consistent deference to state definitions of marriage. Section 3 defines the terms "marriage" and "spouse" for the purposes of federal law. It prevents the federal government from recognizing the marriages of same-sex couples who are legally married in their own states or other jurisdictions and restricts the federal government from granting such couples benefits it provides to different-sex married couples.[2][3]
On February 23, 2011, Attorney General Eric Holder released a memo regarding two lawsuits challenging DOMA Section 3, Pedersen v. OPM and Windsor v. United States. He stated: "After careful consideration, including a review of my recommendation, the President has concluded that given a number of factors, including a documented history of discrimination, classifications based on sexual orientation should be subject to a more heightened standard of scrutiny. The President has also concluded that Section 3 of DOMA, as applied to legally married same-sex couples, fails to meet that standard and is therefore unconstitutional. Given that conclusion, the President has instructed the Department not to defend the statute in such cases."[4] However, the administration intends to continue enforcing the law until it is either repealed by Congress or finally declared unconstitutional in court.[5]
Before Holder's announcement, a response to the complaint was due by March 11, 2011.[6] On April 18, 2011, leaders of the House of Representatives announced they had picked former United States Solicitor General Paul Clement to defend the case.[7] On May 27, the Court scheduled discovery to be completed by July 11.[8] On July 15, the plaintiffs submitted a motion for summary judgment.[9]