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Case Name
Gray v. Orr
PB-IL-0012
Docket / Court
1:13-CV-08449 ( N.D. Ill. )
State/Territory
Illinois
Case Type(s)
Public Benefits / Government Services
Special Collection
Same-Sex Marriage
Attorney Organization
ACLU Chapters (any)
Lambda Legal
Case Summary
On November 22, 2013, two women in a long term relationship filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Cook County. The plaintiffs, represented by private counsel, the ACLU, and Lambda Legal, asked the Court to prohibit the ...
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On November 22, 2013, two women in a long term relationship filed a lawsuit in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 against Cook County. The plaintiffs, represented by private counsel, the ACLU, and Lambda Legal, asked the Court to prohibit the County from enforcing the state marriage ban and to require the County to issue them a marriage license. The plaintiffs contended that failure to do so would constitute a violation of the due process and equal protection guarantees of the United States Constitution.
One of the plaintiffs suffers from terminal breast cancer and she and her longtime partner wish to be married in Illinois before she passes away. An immediate injunction prohibiting enforcement of the Illinois marriage ban would be the only way to ensure that plaintiffs' hope of being legally married would be realized during their lifetimes. Although the Illinois legislature enacted a law that would allow same-sex couples to marry, that law was not scheduled to go into effect until June 1, 2014 (about six months after the complaint was filed). The plaintiffs feared that the terminally ill plaintiff would not live until the expiration of the marriage ban and asked the court to prohibit the County from enforcing the marriage ban in their specific case.
On December 5, 2013, Judge Thomas Durkin issued an opinion granting injunctive relief to the plaintiffs. The Court found that given the compelling circumstances surrounding the plaintiff's medical condition and her potentially imminent death, the injury she and her partner would suffer by denying injunctive relief would be irreparably great. The court noted that the relief granted was limited and extended no further than to the specific plaintiffs. The Court ultimately ordered the County not to enforce the marriage ban and to issue the plaintiffs a marriage license. 2013 WL 6355918, __ F. Supp. 2d __ (N.D. Ill. 2013).
Nate West - 09/23/2014
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Issues and Causes of Action
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Issues
Affected Gender
Female
Constitutional Clause
Due Process
Equal Protection
Content of Injunction
Preliminary relief granted
Discrimination-basis
Sex discrimination
Sexual orientatation
General
Gay/lesbian/transgender
Marriage
Plaintiff Type
Private Plaintiff
Causes of Action
42 U.S.C. § 1983
Case Details
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Defendant(s)
Cook County
Plaintiff Description
Two women in a committed relationship seek a temporary restraining order enjoining Defendant from enforcing the Illinois marriage ban because one Plaintiff faces imminent death and would like to marry before the ban expires.
Indexed Lawyer Organizations
ACLU Chapters (any)
Lambda Legal
Class action status sought
No
Class action status granted
No
Filed Pro Se
No
Prevailing Party
Plaintiff
Public Int. Lawyer
Yes
Nature of Relief
Injunction / Injunctive-like Settlement
Source of Relief
Litigation
Order Duration
2013 - 2014
Filed
11/22/2013
Case Ongoing
No
Additional Resources
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Documents
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Court
Docket(s)
N.D. Ill.
12/30/2013
1:13-cv-08449
PB-IL-0012-9000.pdf
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Detail
Source: PACER [Public Access to Court Electronic Records]
General Documents
N.D. Ill.
11/22/2013
Complaint [ECF# 1]
PB-IL-0012-0001.pdf
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Detail
Source: PACER [Public Access to Court Electronic Records]
N.D. Ill.
12/05/2013
Memorandum Opinion and Order [ECF# 24]
(4 F.Supp.3d 984)
PB-IL-0012-0002.pdf
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WESTLAW
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LEXIS
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Detail
Source: PACER [Public Access to Court Electronic Records]
People
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Judges
Durkin, Thomas Michael
(N.D. Ill.)
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PB-IL-0012-0002 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Gilbert, Jeffrey
Court not on record
[Magistrate]
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PB-IL-0012-9000
Plaintiff's Lawyers
Beem, Marc Oliver
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Clark, Christopher R
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001
Dawson, Kay L.
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001
Freeman, Zachary J
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Grossman, Harvey
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Heinz, Jordan Mitchell
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Huszagh, Richard Scott
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-9000
Kim, Christopher J.
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-9000
Knight, John A.
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Nicklin, Emily
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001
Rao, Malini
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-9000
Sheley, Karen A
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Taylor, Camilla B.
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Weisman, M. David
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001 | PB-IL-0012-9000
Wroe, Mishan
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-0001
Defendant's Lawyers
Fangman, Paul Leo
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-9000
Ray, Kent Stephen
(Illinois)
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PB-IL-0012-9000
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