It was announced today that the U.S. Supreme Court will consider two important questions relating to same-sex marriage–whether states are required to allow same-sex marriages within their jurisdictions, and whether states are required to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. The decisions are expected to be issued in June of this year.

If the Court were to rule that states cannot prohibit same-sex marriage, there could be significant implications for some employee benefit plan sponsors. For example, sponsors of insured health plans in states that currently ban same-sex marriage may be required to provide health coverage to same-sex spouses. In addition, for sponsors of self-insured health plans that exclude same-sex spouses, there may be a heightened risk of liability under federal and state discrimination laws.

Stay tuned…