By SHUNSUKE ABE/ Staff Writer
March 20, 2021 at 15:13 JST
The Supreme Court building in Tokyo (Asahi Shimbun file photo)
The Supreme Court has ruled that same-sex couples are entitled to the same protections under Civil Law as opposite-sex couples in a common-law marriage.
A lawyer for the plaintiff said the decision was another step toward legal revisions to allow same-sex marriage.
The ruling by the Second Petty Bench was dated March 17 and coincided with a landmark district court verdict that said not allowing same-sex marriages was unconstitutional.
The Supreme Court rejected the appeal by the defendant and finalized a high court ruling that ordered her to pay compensation for wrecking the relationship by being unfaithful.
The plaintiff is a woman in her 30s who began a relationship with another woman in 2009. They registered their marriage in New York state, which recognizes same-sex marriages, in 2014.
The other woman wanted to bear a child and received a sperm donation from a man she met through social media. That man later legally changed his gender to female.
The woman began an affair with the individual, leading the plaintiff to seek about 3.1 million yen ($28,000) in compensation.
The Moka branch of the Utsunomiya District Court ruled that it could not find a rationale for denying legal protection to same-sex couples who cannot marry in Japan when comparing their situations to those in common-law marriages who decide not to submit marriage papers to their local government offices.
The Tokyo High Court ordered the defendant to pay 1.1 million yen in compensation. The high court ruled the couple had been in a relationship on par with a marriage since they held a reception in Japan and developed a similar relationship as those in legal marriages.
“The Supreme Court ruling recognized that legal interpretations should treat same-sex couples in the same manner as opposite-sex couples,” noted Remi Shiraki, the plaintiff’s lawyer. “This will serve as a step toward legal changes to allow same-sex marriages.”
The Supreme Court ruled in 1958 that opposite-sex couples in a common-law marriage could seek compensation if the partner had been unfaithful.
However, there have been few legal precedents regarding same-sex couples in a common-law marriage, leading the defendant to argue that she could not be asked for compensation.
But the judges making the district and high court rulings stated that discrimination based on sexual orientation was not permissible.
Court: Denial of same-sex marriages is unconstitutional
March 17, 2021
Woman ordered to pay damages for having sex with man’s wife
March 17, 2021
EDITORIAL: Ball is in the Diet’s court now to legalize same-sex marriages
March 18, 2021
Calls grow to include LGBT couples in national census
October 16, 2020
Supreme Court’s Grand Bench to again hear dual surname issue
December 10, 2020
‘Love can only do so much.’ Gay couple moved to tears after ruling
March 17, 2021
Stories about memories of cherry blossoms solicited from readers
Cooking experts, chefs and others involved in the field of food introduce their special recipes intertwined with their paths in life.
A series based on diplomatic documents declassified by Japan’s Foreign Ministry
A series on the death of a Japanese woman that sparked a debate about criminal justice policy in the United States
A series about Japanese-Americans and their memories of World War II
Here is a collection of first-hand accounts by “hibakusha” atomic bomb survivors.
