OSAKA - The Osaka High Court, presided over by Judge Kumiko Honda, ruled on March 25th that provisions in Japan’s Civil Code and Family Register Act that do not recognize same-sex marriage are unconstitutional, marking the fifth such ruling by a high court in the country.
The decision came in an appeals case filed by three same-sex couples from Aichi, Kyoto, and Kagawa prefectures, who were seeking 1 million yen each in damages from the government. The court found that the provisions violate Article 14, Paragraph 1 of the Constitution, which guarantees equality under the law, as well as Article 24, Paragraph 2, which upholds human dignity and the essential equality of the sexes.
The ruling follows similar decisions by the Sapporo, Tokyo, Fukuoka, and Nagoya High Courts, aligning the Osaka High Court with a growing judicial consensus that the current legal framework discriminates against same-sex couples.
However, the court rejected the couples’ demand for compensation, consistent with the earlier ruling by the Osaka District Court. Notably, the Osaka case had been the only one in which a lower court previously ruled that the current laws were constitutional.
Source: Kyodo
