Another Court Finds Same-Sex Marriage Denial Unconstitutional

Osaka, March 25 (Jiji Press)--Osaka High Court on Tuesday ruled that law provisions that do not allow same-sax marriage are unconstitutional, overturning a lower court judgment.

It was the fifth high court ruling on six damages lawsuits initiated at five district courts in Japan. It followed similar judgments made by Sapporo, Tokyo, Fukuoka and Nagoya high courts.

In 2022, Osaka District Court ruled that the provisions of the Civil Code and the family register law in question were not considered unconstitutional.

On Tuesday, Presiding Judge Kumiko Honda at Osaka High Court said that the provisions "undermine the dignity of individuals seriously and are unreasonable."

Meanwhile, the court rejected the petition for state compensation in the suit, which is one of the six suits filed by three same-sex couples in the central prefecture of Aichi and the western prefectures of Kyoto and Kagawa to win 1 million yen in damages from the government for each of the plaintiffs.

[Copyright The Jiji Press, Ltd.]