Court ruling against gay marriage sets up Japan Supreme Court ruling

found a court JapanThe refusal to legalize gay marriage was ruled constitutional on Friday in the last of six cases that are expected to be brought to the Supreme Court possibly next year for a final and definitive decision.

Tokyo The high court said marriage under the law is largely expected to be a union between men and women, overturning a lower court ruling last year and marking the first defeat in higher courts in six cases brought by people seeking equal marriage rights.

Judge Ayumi Higashi said the legal definition of a family as a unit between a couple and their children is logical and the exclusion of same-sex marriage is legitimate. The court also rejected 1 million yen ($6,400) in damages sought by eight sexual minorities seeking equal marital rights.

The plaintiffs and their lawyers said the decision was unjust but they were determined to continue the fight through the Supreme Court.

“I am very disappointed,” plaintiff Hiromi Hatogai told reporters outside the court. “Instead of sad, I am angry and shocked by the verdict. Was the judge listening to us?”

Another plaintiff, Rei Fukuda, said, “We just want to be able to get married and be happy like anyone else.” “I believe society is changing. We will not give up.”

After all six High Court cases are disposed of, the Supreme Court is expected to handle and decide all appeals.

Although discrimination still exists in school, work, and elsewhere, public support and support in the business community for legalizing same-sex marriage has grown rapidly in recent years.

Japan is the only member of the Group of Seven industrialized nations that does not recognize same-sex marriage or provide any other form of legally binding protection for LGBTQ+ couples.

Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi The conservative ruling Liberal Democratic Party is the main opponent of gay marriage rights in Japan. The government has argued that marriage under civil law does not cover same-sex couples and values ​​natural reproduction.

More than 30 plaintiffs have joined the lawsuits over marriage equality filed across Japan since 2019. They argue that civil law provisions prohibiting same-sex marriage violate the constitutional right to equality and freedom to marry.

Friday’s ruling was the second ruling by the 2022 Osaka District Court to rule the current government’s policy constitutional.