mentally incompetent (Gourvitz & Gourvitz, 2002). Additionally, from a sociological perspective, same-sex marriage would do much to remove any lingering stigma attached to same-sex partnerships. It could help in reducing bias, prejudice and discrimination directed against gay and lesbian individuals living in partnerships. A same-sex marriage constitutional amendment would also have the added effect of stopping the courts from redefining marriage in any way that they see fit, though not all analysts see this effect as positive (Bork, 2004).
An implicit goal of a constitutional amendment permitting same-sex marriage is to accord greater political status to same-sex partners. Duncan (2004) also noted that by passing a constitutional amendment into law, society benefits from eliminating conflicting state laws that leave same-sex partners in doubt and uncertainty as to the
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