Supreme Court Shows Active Restraint in Not Taking Up Marriage Cases

Confounding the expectations of most commentators, the Supreme Court this morning denied petitions for review in all seven same-sex marriage cases pending before it. I wasn't so bullish on the petitions' chances -- the justices are increasingly reluctant to entertain controversial subjects except when they absolutely must -- but see a sort of practical wisdom in this noteworthy inaction. Although it's unusual for the Court to deny review in those rare cases where all parties urge it, there's no current "circuit split" -- all appellate courts have struck down the challenges to various states' marriage laws -- so the justices' demurral signals a desire to let public opinion shift even further in favor of allowing same-sex marriage before the Court wades in with a definitive constitutional ruling. By doing so, and thereby postponing any eventual ruling (perhaps until a circuit court goes the other way, if one does), the Court is lessening the chance that its involvement will warp American legal and political discourse the way Roe v. Wade did.

In the meantime, once today's "decision not to decide" works its way through the lower courts, same-sex couples will be able to marry in 30 states and the District of Columbia. That's a good thing.