Commentary

Are marriage licenses without Kim Davis’ signature valid?

Are marriage licenses without Kim Davis’ signature valid?

Carmen Wampler-Collins, left, and her partner Shannon Wampler-Collins speak with the media on the lawn of the Rowan County Judicial Center in Morehead, Ky. Monday, Sept. 14, 2015. The couple received their marriage license following Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis' announcement earlier that her office will issue marriage licenses under order of a federal judge, but they will not have her name or office listed.
Carmen Wampler-Collins, left, and her partner Shannon Wampler-Collins speak with the media on the lawn of the Rowan County Judicial Center in Morehead, Ky. Monday, Sept. 14, 2015. The couple received their marriage license following Rowan County Clerk Kim Davis’ announcement earlier that her office will issue marriage licenses under order of a federal judge, but they will not have her name or office listed. AP Photo/Timothy D. Easley

Attorneys representing the couples who sued clerk Kim Davis over her refusal to issue marriage licenses are concerned that the altered forms Davis’ deputies issued could be invalid.

Davis, on her first day back at work after a five-day stint in jail, announced on Monday that she would not block her deputies from issuing licenses. But she insisted they be edited to exclude her name and her title.

The forms, a template issued by the state, now read, “pursuant to federal court order” in the spaces meant to list Davis’ position.

Lawyers with the American Civil Liberties Union say they “have concerns about the validity,” given the alterations and said they were reviewing their legal options.

Kentucky’s governor says the altered marriage licenses issued in Rowan County from the office of an embattled clerk are considered valid.

Democratic Gov. Steve Beshear insists the licenses issued “are going to be recognized as valid in the Commonwealth.”

Kentucky state law requires that “every license blank shall contain the identical words and figures.” But Beshear noted that the federal judge overseeing Davis’ case has not raised any objections to the licenses.

The Republican president of Kentucky’s state Senate again called for a special session of the state legislature to change state law to exempt Davis and others who share her beliefs from jabbing to issue licenses. But Beshear again rejected that on Monday.

A lawyer for Kim Davis says the paperwork now going out from her office could be a solution in the matter.

Lawyer Harry Mihet said Monday at a news conference: “The license that went out today does not violate Kim Davis’s conscience. If it’s satisfactory to the … court, then I think we will have found that win-win solution that we have been asking for all along.”

Davis says the licenses are issued without her authority. She herself has questioned their validity.

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