For nearly 150 years, one Supreme Court ruling has held total dominion over the boundaries of religious liberty in America: Reynolds v. United States. It drew a hard line between what you believe in your soul and what the government allows you to do in your home, locking the courthouse door on plural marriage seemingly forever.
That door is beginning to give way.
From landmark privacy rulings to a revolutionized First Amendment standard of strict scrutiny, and from city halls quietly recognizing multi-partner domestic agreements to Utah’s sudden decriminalization of bigamy, the legal bedrock beneath America’s oldest marriage precedent is fracturing.
The next ten years will see a high-stakes constitutional collision between the state’s police powers and the fundamental rights of consenting adults and religious minorities.
Read the full analysis to discover why the ban on plural marriage is heading straight for a decisive Supreme Court reckoning and what to expect as the legal battle lines are redrawn.
