Backers of Proposition 8, which banned gay marriage in the state, requested an emergency court order Friday to enforce Prop. 8's restriction while legal a challenge continues.
The court refused the request Monday. The court does plan to consider whether the governor and attorney general were correct in telling county clerks that the Prop. 8 ban was legally invalid in the state.
The U.S. Supreme Court cleared the way for gay marriages to resume in the nation's most populous state on June 28 by dismissing the backers' appeal of a lower court ruling that found the ban unconstitutional. The high court decided the backers lacked authority to defend Proposition 8 after the governor and attorney general refused to do so.
The California Supreme Court still plans to separately consider whether the lower court ruling that invalidated the ban and a companion mandate prohibiting the state from enforcing it applied statewide or only in Los Angeles and Alameda counties. The two couples who sued to strike down Proposition 8 live in those counties.
Lawyers for Proposition 8 sponsors also have argued that because the U.S. Supreme Court did not rule directly on Proposition 8's constitutionality, state officials are bound by state law to abide by the measure.
The state high court has asked for additional written arguments on those issues by Aug. 1.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
