U.S. Supreme Court Refuses to Take Case That Potentially Flips Landmark Same-Sex Marriage Decision

The U.S. Supreme Court sits in Washington DC, where one of the main priorities of the nine Supreme Court justices is to hold private meetings to decide whether or not to publicly re-assess certain cases, such as the Obergefell v. Hodges decision made in 2015. Courtesy of Wikimedia Commons. 

On November 11, 2025, the United States Supreme Court announced its decision not to take up former Kentucky clerk Kim Davis’s case, which sought to challenge the result of Obergefell v. Hodges. The landmark decision made in 2015 is what ended up legalizing same-sex marriage for all United States citizens on a federal level, rather than leaving it up to individual state governments to make their own decisions.

The original request for the case to be brought to the Supreme Court was through Davis refusing to issue a marriage license for a same-sex couple, David Moore and David Ermold. This refusal stemmed from Davis’s religious beliefs. She later argued that freedom of religion was attacked by the Obergefell ruling. In going against federal law, Moore and Ermold ended up filing a civil rights lawsuit against Davis, where she furthered her refusal against a judge to issue a license to the couple once again. The judge then responded with a jail sentence of six days, while also ensuring a marriage license for Moore and Ermold during Davis’s absence. 

Furthermore, Davis was required to pay $260,000 in attorney’s fees, along with $100,000 going to Ermold and Moore themselves, where she then appealed, arguing that under the First Amendment of the Constitution, she should have been able to practice the right of freedom of religion. After losing this appeal at the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in March 2025, Davis ultimately turned to the Supreme Court, capturing national attention. 

The original case of whether or not Davis should have to pay what was required from the court turned into a potential change in a landmark decision that has been enforced for over 10 years in the United States. 591,000 of the 823,000 current same-sex married couples in the United States got married after the Obergefell v. Hodges decision in 2015.

Regardless, several legal experts argued that this case was not going to end up producing significant changes, despite this being the first formal ask in 10 years to overturn the same-sex marriage ruling as a whole through a cert petition. “Although various commentators and activists have spent weeks claiming that a vehicle for overturning Obergefell was being considered by the justices, no informed Court observers ever thought that the Court would grant review in this case," said Richard W. Garnett, a law professor at Notre Dame University. Out of the 7,000-8,000 cert petitions issued every year, the Supreme Court will hear approximately 80. This case hearing was already considered a long shot by many to begin with. However, because of the focus of political commentators and mobilization of widespread activism it received significant attention.  

On Friday, November 7, 2025, the Supreme Court held their private discussion that would ultimately result in the denying of granting Davis’s cert decision, meaning they would end up choosing not to move forward with re-assessing Obergefell. Due to the private nature of these meetings, the public will not be made aware of what was said during the conferences, only the end result. 

Kim Davis herself attracted large-scale attention and mockery online after the case was denied. This consisted of several activists, even celebrities, teasing Davis for her several failed marriages. “Thrilled to never hear the name Kim Davis ever again. Good luck on your 5th marriage, Kimmie” Food Network star Tiffani Faison wrote in a comment responding to the New York Times’ post with the recent national news. Along with the light-hearted teases on social media, activist groups also publicly responded to the Supreme Court’s decision. “The Supreme Court made clear today that refusing to respect the constitutional rights of others does not come without consequences,” said President of Human Rights Campaign Kelley Robinson in a statement following the court’s refusal. 

While this decision was not that of whether or not same-sex marriage would remain legal, many see it as a could’ve/would’ve hypothetical situation, turning heads to the potential change in a landmark decision that has been put in place in the United States since 2015. It has also geared a focus on smaller-scaled issues within same-sex marriage, such as the Texas Supreme Court’s decision to allow for judges to refuse performing same-sex marriages due to religious beliefs.