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Dan Foley is
named Intermediate
Court judge

Foley lead the legal
attempt to establish
gay marriage in the isles

By Associated Press

Civil rights attorney Dan Foley, the lead attorney for three gay couples seeking the legal right to marry in Hawaii, was named today to the Intermediate Court of Appeals by Gov. Ben Cayetano.

The appointment must be confirmed by the Senate.

Foley would replace Simeon Acoba, who was elevated to the state Supreme Court.

Foley represented two homosexual male couples and one lesbian couple who sued the state because they couldn't get legally married. The Circuit Court ruled in favor of the couples, but the case was appealed to the state Supreme Court.

During the time the appeal was being heard, Hawaii voters cast ballots in 1998 in favor of changing the state Constitution to limit marriage to one man being married to one woman.

The governor called Foley a man of intelligence and integrity, and said he is one of the top attorneys on constitutional law.

"His stand on legal issues, regardless of whether politically popular or not, speaks volumes of the courage and commitment he will bring to the Intermediate Court of Appeals," the governor said.

Foley presently works as a partner in the firm Foley and Partington. He previously worked as executive director of the Hawaii chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.