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Legal Tangles Loom in Gay Marriage Ruling

Challenges will come quickly as newlyweds return to home states

By Sam Gale Rosen, Newser Staff

Posted Jun 16, 2008 6:53 PM CDT

(Newser) – Gay newlyweds coming home from California this week will likely spark legal battles in their home states, the Arizona Republic reports. California is sure to hitch up more than Massachusetts did 4 years ago, and many will return to states that prohibit gay marriage, some by constitutional amendment. "It's uncharted legal territory," law professor Nancy Hunter said.

A couple in a car crash driving home could even face legal issues: Will that state grant hospital visitations? What about key medical decisions? The Republic breaks it down by state law, looking at 41 states that prohibit gay marriage—24 by constitutional bans—and nine that allow same-sex marriage alternatives. "Each state is going to have to address these issues as they come up," Hunter said.

In this Dec. 17, 2004 file photo, Phyllis Lyon, left, and her partner Del Martin, right, sit for a photograph at their home in San Francisco, Friday Dec. 17, 2004. (AP Photo/Eric Risberg)

Diane Sabin and her girlfriend Jewelle Gomez holds hands as they watch the California gay marriage court hearing on closed circuit television at the San Francisco Library . (AP Photo/Marcio Jose Sanchez)

In this June 30, 2006 file photo, Stuart Gaffney, bottom, and John Lewis, top, hold hands with their wedding bands on in San Francisco. (AP Photo)

Interchangeable wedding cake toppers are seen at the Renellie warehouse in Costa Mesa, Calif. on Friday, June 6, 2008. (AP Photo/Damian Dovarganes)

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Legal Tangles Loom in Gay Marriage Ruling

Challenges will come quickly as newlyweds return to home states

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