Gay couples Tuesday denounced Maryland?s Court of Appeals ruling that marriage must be between a man and a woman, calling on state lawmakers to grant them equal family protections.

In the 4-3 ruling that reversed a 2006 Baltimore City Circuit Court decision, high court judges said the state?s interest in “fostering procreation” and “encouraging the traditional family structure” is a legitimate governmental function. The ruling comes after court clerks in Baltimore and elsewhere in the state denied the marriage licenses of nine same-sex couples in 2004, prompting a lawsuit filed in part by the American Civil Liberties Union and Equality Maryland, a gay rights group.

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