【】Tweet may have been deleted

One of the biggest current debates in Australia — around marriage equality — caused a government website to crash on Thursday.。

The website for Australia's High Court was out of operation just minutes before the court handed down a decision over the legality of the federal government's same-sex marriage postal vote. And it's currently still out of action:
。

The outage came just moments before the High Court found that the government's postal vote is lawful, a green light which will enable the Australian Bureau of Statistics to send out a non-compulsory survey to enrolled Australians, asking the question: “Should the law be changed to allow same-sex couples to marry?”

It comes after two days of hearings at the High Court in Melbourne, unpacking whether the Australian government could lawfully use $122 million to implement a postal plebiscite on the matter of same-sex marriage.。

Mashable Top StoriesStay connected with the hottest stories of the day and the latest entertainment news.Sign up for Mashable's Top Stories newsletter。By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.
。By signing up you agree to our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy.。

Thanks for signing up!。

The ruling has been one of the most anticipated decisions in Australia this week, so the crash comes as a minimal surprise. Members of the public, government and media alike awaited the decision on Thursday, with those outside the courtroom constantly checking the website for a result.。

SEE ALSO:Subway franchise prints pro-marriage equality messages on receipts。

Australians will receive their postal survey after Sept. 12 and will have until Nov. 7 to mail it back to the ABS. Then, the survey results will be announced on Nov. 15, after which the issue will be voted upon in federal parliament.。

Tweet may have been deleted。

The next few months will see furious campaigning from both sides. Several capital city councils, including the City of Sydney and City of Melbourne, have publicly engaged in marketing campaigns for the 'Yes' vote.
。

Tweet may have been deleted。

Tweet may have been deleted。

The High Court's website was back up at 3.30pm on Thursday. 。TopicsLGBTQGovernmentPolitics
。