Same-sex marriage has been at the center of a legal tug of war in California for more than a decade, and the latest front in this struggle has been unfolding before U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker. The federal jurist is weighing a constitutional challenge to Proposition 8, the state’s current same-sex marriage ban.

Walker is expected to issue a ruling in the case soon, but both sides have promised to appeal, making it likely the issue will reach the U.S. Supreme Court.

This interactive timeline plots major milestones in the state's same-sex marriage history. Click on the dates along the bottom to see events and read quotations from court decisions.

And read our feature on Judge Vaughn Walker, the federal judge now considering the constitutionality of same sex marriage.