On Wednesday, the Northern Ireland Court of Appeal handed down judgment in Re X [2020] NICA 21. The appellant and his husband, British citizens domiciled in Northern Ireland, were married in 2014 in England. On 19 December 2014, the appellant issued a petition pursuant to Article 31 of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings (NI) Order 1989 seeking a declaration that his marriage in London was a valid and subsisting marriage under the law of Northern Ireland [1]. The Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act 2013, however, provided that a same-sex marriage under the law of England and Wales was to be treated in Northern Ireland as a civil partnership so, in the alternative, he sought a declaration that the non-recognition of his marriage was incompatible with Articles 8, 9 or 12 ECHR either alone or read in conjunction with Article 14 ECHR [2]. He was unsuccessful in the High Court. Continue reading →