ABA Ethics Opinion on whether it is a violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct for a judge to refuse to perform same sex marriages -- UPDATED

Earlier today, the ABA Standing Committee on Ethics and Professional Responsibility released its latest Formal Opinion (No. 485) which addresses whether it is a violation of the Code of Judicial Conduct for a judge to refuse to perform same sex marriages.  You can download or read the full opinion here.

The opinion's digest reads as follows:

A judge for whom performing marriages is a mandatory obligation of judicial office may not decline to perform marriages of same-sex couples. A judge for whom performing marriages is a discretionary judicial function may not decline to perform marriages of same-sex couples if the judge agrees to perform opposite-sex marriages. A judge’s refusal to perform same-sex marriages while performing opposite-sex marriages calls into question the judge’s integrity and impartiality and reflects bias and prejudice in violation of Rules 1.1, 2.2, 2.3(A), and 2.3(B) of the Model Code of Judicial Conduct. In a jurisdiction in which a judge is not obligated to perform marriages but has the discretion to do so, a judge may refuse to perform marriages for members of the public. A judge who declines to perform marriages for members of the public may still perform marriages for family and friends. If a judge chooses to perform marriages for family and friends, however, the judge may not decline to perform same-sex marriages for family and friends.

UPDATE 4/19/19:  The ABA Journal has a short article on the opinion in its April 2019 issue.  You can read the article here.