MADISON, Wis.—The Wisconsin Supreme Court sidestepped the underlying issue of whether the state should provide benefits to same-sex partners in a split-decision Feb. 7 on another issue related to the case.

But the justices lashed out at each other on a variety of other issues in separate opinions.

Chief Justice Shirley Abrahamson, writing for the majority, accused the three justices in the minority of stirring “the cauldron of hot-button issues” with a dissent addressing abortion and the influence of the American Civil Liberties Union in addition to gay rights.

The court’s ruling simply upheld two lower courts decisions barring eight Wisconsin municipalities from joining a lawsuit filed by 12 current or former gay state employees against the state. The underlying issue has yet to be ruled on in any court.

But the justices went far afield in the 91-page ruling.

In the dissent, Justice David Prosser brought up abortion, questioning the legitimacy of the U.S. Supreme Court’s ruling in the Roe v. Wade case that legalized abortion.

In response, Abrahamson accused Prosser and the two other justices in the minority—Annette Ziegler and Pat Roggensack—of turning to “political considerations and appeals to emotions.”

The case at hand is about procedure, she said: The court does not even come close to addressing the issue of whether gay state workers should have benefits equal to heterosexuals.