A New York State appeals court rejected a challenge to New York’s year-old same-sex marriage law brought by the anti-gay New Yorkers for Constitutional Freedoms and Matt Staver’s Liberty Counsel on Friday.

Grasping at straws, Liberty Council lawyers argued that Republican state senators violated New York’s open meeting rules ahead of the law’s passage last year when Governor Cuomo, New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg and another gay marriage supporter, met behind closed doors with the Senate’s Republican majority in violation of the open meeting law.

New York’s open meeting law requires public access to the deliberations of legislative bodies.

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman argued that the Republican caucus with invited guests was exempt, even if the guests aren’t in the same party

The New York State appeals court agreed with Schneiderman in a 5-0 ruling.

“In the event that we were to adopt plaintiffs’ limited definition of ‘guests,’ it would be impossible for a Democratic member of a governor’s office, such as a budget director, to speak to a majority Republican caucus,” according to the decision

Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, called the decision “a great victory for marriage equality.”

“It’s a disappointment, because this gives a green light to the politicians to (use) strong arm tactics behind closed doors and shut out the people from the process,” stated Mathew Staver, founder of Liberty Counsel.

The Liberty Counsel is expected to appeal the ruling. (Of course.)