Same-sex marriage licenses issued to terminally ill

Cook County Clerk David Orr will begin issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples who face life-threatening illness, following Monday’s federal court decision. Issuance of a marriage license is dependent on the completion of a physician’s certification form, stating there is reason to expect that one or both partners may not live to June 1, 2014, when marriage equality is set to take effect in Illinois. The form can be downloaded on the marriage equality page of the clerk’s website, http://bit.ly/1baUH2X. To date, three same-sex couples have been granted emergency marriage licenses due to serious illness.