Firm defending DOMA withdraws (Salon)
Earlier this year, Barack Obama's Justice Department announced that it would not defend the Defense of Marriage Act in court, because they had decided that Section 3 of the law is unconstitutional. With two separate challenges to the law pending in federal court and the government no longer defending it, the law's provision barring federal recognition of same-sex marriages could be struck down. In order to protect the sanctity of opposite-marriage, House Speaker John Boehner announced that the House of Representatives would defend the law in court. So they hired a fancy -- and pricey -- law firm. But today, the firm dropped the case.
King and Spalding released a statement announcing their decision:
"Today the firm filed a motion to withdraw from its engagement to represent the Bipartisan Legal Advisory Group of the House of Representatives on the constitutional issues regarding Section III of the 1996 Defense of Marriage Act. Last week we worked diligently through the process required for withdrawal.
In reviewing this assignment further, I determined that the process used for vetting this engagement was inadequate. Ultimately I am responsible for any mistakes that occurred and apologize for the challenges this may have created."
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Complete article at the Salon : http://bit.ly/hRu0dn
