The California Supreme Court will consider if traditional marriage supporters can appeal the ruling that invalidated Proposition 8.

The National Organization for Marriage praised the high court's decision.

"(The court) has established a clear pathway for the decision of voters to finally be respected," said NOM president Brian Brown. " We have no doubt that the state supreme court will find that the proponents of prop 8 have the right to defend the initiative."

U.S. District Judge Vaughn Walker struck down Prop 8 several months ago and the Golden State's attorney general opted not to appeal.

"As a matter of law, it's right that you want to give these groups standing," said John Matsusaka, president of the Initiative and Referendum Institute at the University of Southern California. "The attorney general and governor should have done their job and not put us into a constitutional bind."

The panel of the 9th U.S. Circuit of Appeals said in January that it can't reach a decision until it knows if ballot proposition sponsors have legal standing to step in when the attorney general and governor refuse to defend voter-approved initiatives in court.