The Union for Reform Judaism and the Los Angeles-based Jews for Marriage Equality joined more than 250 religious and civil rights groups this week urging the California Courts of Appeal to put an end to state laws that deny same-sex couples the right to marry.

On Monday, Jan. 9, the court began hearing the state’s appeal of the March 2005 decision by San Francisco Superior Court Judge Richard Kramer, which held

that California’s current statutory ban on marriage of same-sex couples violates the California Constitution.