Despite Christie’s request that the State Supreme Court stay the ruling of the lower court while this case is hashed out in court, the court will not put the lower court’s decision on hold and thus gay marriage will go into effect on Monday:
BUZZFEED – The New Jersey Supreme Court on Friday denied Gov. Chris Christie’s request to put a marriage equality ruling on hold while the state high court considers the appeal of a lower-court ruling in support of marriage equality.
The unanimous decision denying the Christie administration’s request for a stay means same-sex couples can begin marrying in the Garden State on October 21.
Senator-elect and Newark Mayor Cory Booker is among those local officials planning to officiate same-sex couples’ weddings at 12:01 a.m. Monday.
The decision does not end the matter in the state, as the state Supreme Court previously announced it will be hearing a full appeal of the merits of the case, in which trial Judge Mary Jacobson found that New Jersey could not deny same-sex couples marriage licenses, in January 2014.
In the meantime, however, the court is allowing Jacobson’s ruling to go into effect, in part, because “the state has not shown a reasonable probability or likelihood of success on the merits,” Chief Justice Stuart Rabner wrote for the court.