UPDATE: State selects outside counsel; gay couples allowed to file joint state tax returns
Written by Cami Cox
UPDATE: Yesterday, Utah Attorney General Sean Reyes named the three attorneys who have been selected to take charge of Utah’s same-sex marriage appeal. They are: Gene C. Shaerr, an appellate and Supreme Court expert who is originally from Utah but has been practicing law in Washington, D.C.; John Bursch, a former Solicitor General from the state of Michigan; and Monte Neil Stewart, an attorney from Idaho. With the aid of two assistant attorneys general, the three will have until Jan. 27 to complete and submit the state’s first argument to the 10th Circuit Court of Appeals in Denver.
In representing the State of Utah, Schaerr has agreed to cap his fees at $200,000; Bursch and Stewart will each cap their fees at $50,000. Conservative public policy think tank the Sutherland Institute, based in Salt Lake City, has said it will shoulder the entirety of the expense. The Sutherland Institute was heavily involved in the attorney selection process.
In a rather surprising move, the Utah State Tax Commission decided yesterday that it will allow same-sex married couples to jointly file their state income tax returns this year.
SEE RELATED STORIES:
NO MORE ‘LOVE IT OR LEAVE IT’: Same-sex marriage petitions surpass 86,000 signatures
State of Utah will not recognize gay marriages until final court ruling
Same-sex couples throughout Utah left wondering: ‘Is my marriage valid?’
BREAKING NEWS: Supreme Court temporarily halts gay marriage in Utah
Utah’s gay marriage battle rages on
BREAKING NEWS: Appeals court denies request to stop same-sex marriages in Utah
UPDATED: Emmy-winning journalist among St. George same-sex marriage license applicants
OPINION: A Mormon’s perspective on the gay marriage issue
EXCLUSIVE VIDEO: How I got to witness St. George, Utah’s first gay wedding
EXCLUSIVE: First same-sex marriage licenses issued in Washington County, Utah
BREAKING NEWS: Federal judge declares Utah’s same-sex marriage ban unconstitutional
