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Commonwealth Court Sets Limits On Arguments In Montgomery County Same Sex Marriage Case

By Tony Romeo

HARRISBURG, Pa. (CBS) - A state court has laid down the ground rules for upcoming oral arguments in the battle over same sex marriage licenses being issued in Montgomery County.

The Corbett administration is seeking to stop Montgomery County's Register of Wills / Clerk of Orphans Court, D. Bruce Hanes, from issuing marriage licenses in defiance of state law.

READ: Full CBS Philly coverage of the battle over same-sex marriage in Pennsylvania

On Thursday, Commonwealth Court issued an order stipulating that oral arguments in the case be limited to five topics. The first issue laid out is whether Commonwealth Court has jurisdiction in the case because Hanes is a court official. Other topics specified by the court include whether the state Department of Health, which brought the suit, has standing and whether the constitutionality of the law in question can be used as a defense.

The court will hear arguments on those issues on September 4th.

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