ROXANA HEGEMAN, Associated Press

WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas says there nothing more a federal judge in Kansas can do that that has not already been done by a U.S. Supreme Court ruling last month that legalized same-sex unions nationwide.

The state on Tuesday argued the court should dismiss as moot the lawsuit filed by a civil right’s group challenging the state’s gay marriage ban. Kansas contended in a court filing that continued litigation serves no legitimate purpose.

Since the high court’s ruling, Kansas has been issuing marriage licenses to same-sex couples and awarding them the same tax, health insurance and other benefits given to married couples.

It argued the same-sex couples who sued no longer have standing because the relief they sought has already been given to them without the need for a judgment in their case.

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WICHITA, Kan. (AP) — Kansas faces a court-imposed deadline to make its arguments as a judge considers whether to explicitly strike down the state’s ban on same-sex marriages.

The state has asked the court to dismiss as moot the lawsuit filed by the American Civil Liberties Union challenging the ban. Kansas contends it has recognized such unions since a U.S. Supreme Court decision last month legalizing them.

But the ACLU has argued that in other states facing similar lawsuits, courts have been entering final judgments getting rid of gay marriage bans, not simply dismissing cases as moot. ACLU contends neither the governor nor attorney general has issued any clear directives acknowledging the decision’s binding effect in Kansas.

A federal court has given Kansas until this Tuesday to respond before it makes its ruling.