Page "Baker v. Vermont" Paragraph 6

In the absence of a statutory right to same-sex marriage, the plaintiffs argued that the Vermont Constitution's Common Benefits Clause ( Chapter I, Article 7 ), which guarantees all citizens equal benefit and protection of the law, guarantees same-sex couples ' right to the substantial benefits and protections of marriage.

The plaintiffs also addressed the lower court's justification for limiting marital status to male-female couples — linking marital status to child rearing — noting that Vermont law recognizes same-sex couples ' right to adopt children, and to parent children conceived by natural and artificial means.

They questioned a system that explicitly allowed same-sex partners to parent, but denied them ( and their adopted children ) the benefits and security of marriage.