Julaine K. Appling v. Scott Walker

¶ 1. Wisconsin voters amended the state constitution in 2006, adding two sentences: "Only a marriage between one man and one woman shall be valid or recognized as a marriage in this state. A legal status identical or substantially similar to that of marriage for unmarried individuals shall not be valid or recognized in this state."1 In this case we are asked to determine whether Wis. Stat. Chapter 770, by which the legislature created the legal status of domestic partnership for same-sex couples,2 violates that constitutional provision.3

*138¶ 2. The question is whether Plaintiffs4 have proved…