Eight public
municipalities will be barred from intervening in a
lawsuit over domestic-partner benefits for state employees'
partners, the Wisconsin supreme court ruled. The
parties failed to show direct interest in the suit,
the Associated Press reported Thursday.
The
municipalities -- consisting of cities, towns, villages, and
school districts, according to court documents --
wanted a role in the case because they believed they
would have to start paying increased health care
costs.
Larry Dupuis,
legal director of the American Civil Liberties Union of
Wisconsin, told the University of Wisconsin Daily
Cardinal that he believes the decision will allow the
case to move promptly.
"Now the
parties ... to the case can litigate the case the way
that they need to litigate it, without other people
bringing a bunch of motions and doing things that
could delay the case for years and years," Dupuis
told the Cardinal.
The lawsuit was
filed by a group of six current and former state
employees and their partners against the Wisconsin
government. The court's ruling upholds two lower court
rulings against the municipalities. (The
Advocate)
