On Nov.6, the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals, as expected, upheld state laws that effectively barred same-sex marriage in Kentucky, Michigan, Ohio and Tennessee, reported The New York Times.

Reacting to the news, constitutional experts predicted that the new ruling, which breaks with previous circuit court  decisions on the constitutionality of same-sex marriage, will likely prompt the U.S. Supreme Court to hear one or more cases dealing with the issue by the next term, with a ruling likely by June.

Archbishop Salvatore Cordileone, the USCCB's point man on this issue, praised the decision

Judge Jeffrey Sutton, writing for the majority in the 2-1 decision, ruled that state laws banning legal marriage between same-sex couples did not violate the right to equal protection and due process, guaranteed under the Constitution,  as a slew of lower court decisions found.

Ed Whelan’s helpful summery of Judge Sutton’s findings, which include his acceptance of legal arguments that present a “rational” basis for defining marriage as a union of one man and one woman, is  here.

In a break with other circuit  decisions on this issue, Judge Sutton  concluded that  any significant change in state laws governing the institution of marriage should be decided by the Supreme Court or by “the less expedient, but usually reliable, work of the state democratic processes.”

As Fox News noted, the justices have yet to issue a definitive ruling on this issue

The high court on Oct. 6 unexpectedly turned away appeals from five states seeking to prohibit gay and lesbian unions. The court's order effectively made gay marriage legal in 30 states. The San Francisco-based 9th Circuit Court of Appeals the next day overturned same-sex marriage bans in Idaho and Nevada, the fourth federal appeals court to rule against state bans.

A total of 32 states, along with the District of Columbia, now permit same-sex couples to legally marry