Professors Submit Amicus Brief on Controversial Marriage Amendment Title

Professor Dale Carpenter spearheaded an effort to submit a law professors' amicus brief to the Minnesota Supreme Court in support of Secretary of State Mark Ritchie's authority to select a title for the marriage amendment up for a vote in November. Nineteen professors from all four local law schools signed the brief, including Professors Brian Bix, Claire Hill, Brett McDonnell, William McGeveran, Fred Morrison, Myron Orfield, Richard Painter, and Carpenter. Robins, Kaplan, Miller & Ciresi attorneys, including Jamie Kurtz (’10), Laura Nelson (’03), and Bruce Manning acted as representatives. The brief maintains that the Legislature's title, "Recognition of Marriage Solely Between One Man and One Woman," has no legal standing because it was vetoed by the Governor. The professors also argue that Ritchie's alternative, "Limiting the Status of Marriage to Opposite Sex Couples," represents an "appropriate title" as required by Minnesota statutory and constitutional law. The Court will hear the challenge to the title on July 31.