Kim Davis, the former Kentucky county clerk jailed in 2015 for refusing to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples, is asking the U.S. Supreme Court to overturn its 2015 decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, which legalized same-sex marriage nationwide.
In a formal petition filed with the Court, Davis’ attorney, Mathew Staver, called the ruling “egregiously wrong” and argued it “must be corrected,” contending that the First Amendment’s protection of religious exercise shields her from personal liability, via Newsweek. Davis is appealing a $100,000 jury verdict for emotional damages plus $260,000 in attorneys’ fees to a couple she attempted to deny a marriage license.
The justices are expected to privately consider this fall whether to take the case, marking the first formal request since 2015 to revisit Obergefell. If granted, oral arguments could be held next spring, with a decision next year. The Court could also decline to hear it, leaving the lower Court’s ruling intact.
The press has largely depicted Davis’ bid as a long shot, but at least one member of the Court has previously signaled interest in reexamining the precedent. In his concurring opinion in the 2022 decision overturning Roe v. Wade, Justice Clarence Thomas wrote that the Court “should reconsider all of this Court’s substantive due process precedents, including Griswold, Lawrence, and Obergefell.” No other justice joined Thomas in that view.
Justices who decided Obergefell v. Hodges (June 26, 2015)
| Justice | How they ruled in Obergefell (2015) | Appointing President | Party of appointing President |
|---|---|---|---|
| Anthony M. Kennedy | Wrote the majority opinion | Ronald Reagan | Republican |
| Ruth Bader Ginsburg | Joined the majority | Bill Clinton | Democrat |
| Stephen G. Breyer | Joined the majority | Bill Clinton | Democrat |
| Sonia Sotomayor | Joined the majority | Barack Obama | Democrat |
| Elena Kagan | Joined the majority | Barack Obama | Democrat |
| John G. Roberts, Jr. | Wrote a dissent | George W. Bush | Republican |
| Antonin Scalia | Wrote a dissent | Ronald Reagan | Republican |
| Clarence Thomas | Joined dissents | George H. W. Bush | Republican |
| Samuel A. Alito, Jr. | Filed a dissent | George W. Bush | Republican |
The composition of the Court has shifted since Obergefell was decided. Justices Anthony Kennedy, Ruth Bader Ginsburg, and Stephen Breyer, who helped form the Court majority, are now off the Court. Dissenter Antonin Scalia has passed away. In most of these cases, the Justices were replaced by someone perceived to be to their ideological right or someone who was similarly ideologically inclined, if they were also a Republican-appointed justice.
Current Supreme Court (2025) and how it relates to Obergefell
| Current Justice (2025) | On Court for Obergefell (2015)? | How they voted in Obergefell (if applicable) | Appointing President | Party of appointing President |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| John G. Roberts, Jr. (Chief Justice) | Yes | Dissent | George W. Bush | Republican |
| Clarence Thomas | Yes | Dissent | George H. W. Bush | Republican |
| Samuel A. Alito, Jr. | Yes | Dissent | George W. Bush | Republican |
| Sonia Sotomayor | Yes | Majority | Barack Obama | Democrat |
| Elena Kagan | Yes | Majority | Barack Obama | Democrat |
| Neil M. Gorsuch | No | Not on Court in 2015 | Donald J. Trump | Republican |
| Brett M. Kavanaugh | No | Not on Court in 2015 | Donald J. Trump | Republican |
| Amy Coney Barrett | No | Not on Court in 2015 | Donald J. Trump | Republican |
| Ketanji Brown Jackson | No | Not on Court in 2015 | Joseph R. Biden Jr. | Democrat |
Davis’ case is backed by Liberty Counsel, a Christian legal organization, and comes amid renewed efforts by some groups to return marriage policy, like abortion, to the states. At least nine states this year have introduced legislation or passed resolutions urging the Court to reverse Obergefell, according to advocacy group Lambda Legal.
Support for same-sex marriage remains high nationally, about 70% in Gallup’s 2025 polling, but has slipped among Republicans, down from 55% in 2021 to 41% this year. Advocates warn that a reversal would reignite state-level bans. However, existing marriages would remain valid under the 2022 Respect for Marriage Act, which requires recognition of legal same-sex marriages performed in any state.
Opponents of Davis’ petition say the underlying dispute is not the right vehicle for challenging Obergefell. William Powell, attorney for the couple who sued Davis, said in a statement, “Not a single judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals showed any interest in Davis’ rehearing petition, and we are confident the Supreme Court will likewise agree that Davis’ arguments do not merit further attention,” per Newsweek.
Lower courts have rejected Davis’ First Amendment defense, with a federal appeals panel ruling earlier this year that she was liable for state action, which “the First Amendment does not protect.”
Even some legal analysts who support reexamining Obergefell say the Court may prefer to wait for a different case.
“Culturally, same-sex marriage has become embedded in American life, and it is still popular in public opinion polls,” Daniel Urman, a law professor at Northeastern University, reportedly said to Newsweek. Urman noted that while Justices Thomas and Samuel Alito might side with Davis, he does not see a majority ready to overturn the ruling.