Chambers v. Ormiston

Because we firmly believe that our statutory law does not bar the doors of the Family Court to Rhode Island citizens desiring a judicial determination of their marital status, we respectfully dissent.

We are in complete agreement with the majority on one critical point, however. The legal recognition that ought to be afforded same-sex marriages for any particular purpose is fundamentally a question of public policy, more appropriately determined by the General Assembly after full and robust public debate. If the courts are called upon to resolve any issue involving the validity of such a…