By: Sara Prose, Esq.
In March, Maryland became the eighth U.S. state to legalize same-sex marriage. Almost immediately after Governor Martin O’Malley signed the bill into law, an opposition group, the Maryland Marriage Alliance, began collecting signatures to bring the law to a referendum. Did you know that even if the law does go to a referendum and the voters vote to overturn the law, same-sex marriage will still be recognized in Maryland?
In Port v. Cowan, the Maryland Court of Appeals held that same-sex marriage performed in other states must be recognized in Maryland. The referendum is about whether the law permitting same-sex couples to marry in Maryland should stand. The Court of Appeals, however, has already decided that marriages performed legally in another state must be recognized. This means regardless of what happens with the referendum, if you are legally married in another state, your marriage will be recognized in Maryland.