Overview
For much of U.S. history, states and the District of Columbia set the basic rules for who could marry. Federal programs generally relied on those state determinations when extending benefits, duties and protections to married couples.
The federal Defense of Marriage Act, enacted in 1996, changed that relationship. Its Section 3 directed the federal government not to recognize a same-sex marriage, even when the marriage was valid under the law of a state or the District of Columbia. States also adopted laws or constitutional amendments restricting recognition of same-sex marriages.
Federal recognition and constitutional challenges
Challenges to Section 3 argued that refusing federal recognition to legally married same-sex couples violated constitutional guarantees. Federal courts reached decisions addressing equal protection, federalism and the relationship between state marriage law and federal benefits.
In 2013, the U.S. Supreme Court decided United States v. Windsor. The Court invalidated Section 3 of DOMA. The decision allowed the federal government to recognize marriages that were valid under applicable state law, subject to the legal rules in force at the time.
Later litigation addressed whether states could refuse to license or recognize same-sex marriages. In 2015, the Supreme Court held in Obergefell v. Hodges that the Fourteenth Amendment requires states to license and recognize marriages between two people of the same sex.
State laws and constitutional amendments
Before nationwide marriage equality, state approaches varied substantially. Some jurisdictions licensed same-sex marriages, some recognized marriages performed elsewhere, and others enacted statutory bans or constitutional amendments. These measures became the subject of state and federal lawsuits, appeals and stays.
The legal debate involved more than terminology. Recognition affected taxation, inheritance, health-care decisions, parental status, immigration, employment benefits and other areas in which marital status carried legal consequences.
Topics in this section
- Introduction: overview, impact, background and developments in U.S. DOMA law
- State DOMA laws
- Effectiveness of DOMA laws and constitutional amendments
- The 1996 passage of the federal DOMA law
- Federal court cases challenging DOMA's constitutionality
- Congressional efforts to repeal the federal DOMA law
- The proposed Federal Marriage Amendment
Reading the archive today
Older pages often use language and legal assumptions that reflect the period in which they were written. For current questions about marriage, family status or legal rights, readers should consult an up-to-date, qualified legal source. This educational page is intended to explain historical context rather than provide legal advice.