Family Research Council filed this "friend of the court" brief with the
Washington State Supreme Court in February 2005 to defend the state's
marriage laws, which define marriage as the union between one man and
one woman.
Two separate lawsuits challenging the state's Defense of Marriage Act were filed in 2004 -- one against King County, the other against the state -- by 19 gay and lesbian couples seeking the right to marry or to have their marriages from elsewhere recognized in this state. The two cases were merged into one for the appeal to the Supreme Court, which was argued March 8, 2005, by attorneys for both sides.
This brief argues that there is no fundamental right to same-sex
marriage under the Washington constitution, and that the state has a
legitimate and compelling interest in protecting traditional marriage to
encourage responsible procreation and the optimal environment for
raising children.