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*FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:*
June 26, 2025




*Media Contact:*
Danny Wimmer <[email protected]>






Attorney General Nessel Issues Statement on 10th Anniversary of Obergefell v. Hodges

LANSING – Today, Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel issued the following statement marking the 10th anniversary of the landmark ruling in "Obergefell v. Hodges": 

“Ten years ago, I brought a Michigan case to the United States Supreme Court, which legalized same-sex marriage and granted adoption rights to same-sex couples nationwide. As Justice Kennedy so eloquently wrote in the "Obergefell "opinion: ‘No union is more profound than marriage, for it embodies the highest ideals of love, fidelity, devotion, sacrifice, and family. In forming a marital union, two people become something greater than once they were. As some of the petitioners in these cases demonstrate, marriage embodies a love that may endure even past death. It would misunderstand these men and women to say they disrespect the idea of marriage. Their plea is that they do respect it, respect it so deeply that they seek to find its fulfillment for themselves. Their hope is not to be condemned to live in loneliness, excluded from one of civilization’s oldest institutions. They ask for equal dignity in the eyes of the law. The Constitution grants them that right.’ 

“This anniversary is deeply personal to me, as it is to so many others across Michigan and the country. It marks one of the best and most meaningful days of my life, not just because of what it meant for me and my family, but because of the joy and legal recognition it brought to countless others. It gave same-sex couples the right to marry, to adopt, and build families with the protections they had long been denied. It helped so many people, while hurting absolutely no one, but we cannot take these rights for granted.  

“A decade later, there are still individuals, lawmakers, and organizations working to undo this hard-fought progress and strip LGBTQ families of their rights. Today isn’t about just remembering a historic legal victory – it's about recommitting to the fight to protect it – and 10 years after we won the fight for marriage equality, I remain as determined as ever to defend it.”   

Prior to being elected, Attorney General Nessel was lead attorney for the plaintiffs in "DeBoer v. Snyder", a precursor to "Obergefell v. Hodges". Earlier this month, Attorney General Nessel and Arizona Attorney General Kris Mayes released a two-part series on their podcast, "Pantsuits and Lawsuits", reflecting on the legacy and ongoing fight for marriage equality 10 years after the U.S. Supreme Court’s decision. The episodes can be found on the Department of Attorney General website [ [link removed] ]. 

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