Spencer Geiger (left) and Carl Johansen protest for equal marriage outside the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse as oral arguments in the case of Bostic v Rainey proceed on February 4, 2014 in Norfolk, Virginia. (Photo by Jay Paul/Getty Images)

Spencer Geiger (left) and Carl Johansen protest for equal marriage outside the Walter E. Hoffman U.S. Courthouse as oral arguments in the case of Bostic v Rainey proceed on February 4, 2014 in Norfolk, Virginia. (Photo by Jay Paul/Getty Images)

The Supreme Court today issued a stay on a ruling that overturned Virginia’s same-sex marriage ban. That means clerks in the commonwealth will not be able to issue marriage licenses to same-sex couples tomorrow, as many were prepared to do.

Virginia Attorney General Mark Herring supports overturning the ban, but said staying the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit’s ruling was necessary because of possible confusion until the case is settled.

“I’ve worked to move the case along quickly and asked the Supreme Court to take this extraordinary step because I don’t want this discriminatory ban to stay in place one day longer than necessary,” Herring said in a statement. “However, a stay is warranted in light of the negative impact on Virginia children, families, and businesses if the Supreme Court eventually rules against marriage equality and forces an unwinding of Virginians’ marriages, adoptions, inheritances, or workplace benefits.”

Prince William County clerk of court Michele McQuigg filed the stay against the Fourth Circuit’s decision with the Supreme Court, saying the ruling would create “uncertainty for the public and irreparable injury to the commonwealth.” McQuigg is represented by Alliance Defending Freedom, a “religious freedom” non-profit with a “record of sharp anti-gay bigotry,” according to the Southern Poverty Law Center.

“Virginians deserve an orderly and fair resolution to the question of whether they will remain free to preserve marriage as the union of a man and a woman in their laws,” ADF senior counsel Byron Babione said in a statement. “By granting our request to place a hold on the 4th Circuit’s decision, the Supreme Court is making clear, as it already did in the Utah marriage case, that it believes a dignified process is better than disorder. The Supreme Court acted wisely in restraining the lower court from implementing a ruling of this magnitude before the high court has a chance to decide the issue.”

Herring’s office has asked the Supreme Court to take up the case as soon as possible.

Update: Here’s Herring’s statement from today.

“This case has moved with extraordinary pace, from filing to a possible review by the U.S. Supreme Court in just one year. But it is still difficult to expect Virginians to wait to exercise what I believe is a fundamental right, especially when we are so close to our goal. That’s why I’ve been fighting for marriage equality and working to expedite the case so the Supreme Court can definitively answer the constitutional questions about marriage equality and permanently protect the families of Virginia’s same-sex couples. I reluctantly agreed that a stay was warranted in light of the way the Supreme Court handled a nearly identical case in Utah, and because of the potential that an adverse Supreme Court ruling might cause children adopted by a second parent to have that adoption heartbreakingly invalidated, death benefits conferred to grieving spouses taken away, and spousal benefits families thought would pay the bills thrown into limbo.

“Virginia’s case is waiting for the Supreme Court’s review, as are several others from around the country, and I have petitioned for an extraordinarily speedy review from the Court. Virginia families suffer each day that this decision is delayed.”

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