Virginia: Marriage equality heads to the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals today

Today, in a historic milestone for the marriage equality movement, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit will hear oral argument for the first time on the constitutionality of whether gay and lesbian couples have the right to marry.

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia ruled in February in Bostic v. Schaefer that laws prohibiting gay and lesbian couples from marrying the in state are unconstitutional as they violate the Equal Protection and Due Process Clauses of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution.

The case will be heard by a three-judge panel including: Judge Henry F. Floyd, appointed by President Barack Obama, Judge Roger L. Gregory, first appointed in recess by President Bill Clinton then renominated by President George W. Bush, and Judge Paul V. Niemeyer, appointed by George H.W. Bush.