LGBT Rights in Argentina - Recognition of Same-sex Relationships - 2009 Court Ruling

2009 Court Ruling

In November 2009, a judge ruled that the prohibition of same-sex marriage was unconstitutional and permitted a male couple, Alex Freyre and Jose Maria Di Bello, to be married. The decision was hailed as a "legal first" by Reuters who said it was "setting a precedent that could pave the way for the Catholic country to become the first in Latin America to allow same-sex marriage". Freyre and Di Bello confirmed they were "the first gay couple in Latin America to get the right to marry". The Chief of Government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, Mauricio Macri, confirmed the city's government would not be appealing the decision. Macri said that the decision was "an important step, because we must learn how to live in freedom without hurting the rights of others", later adding that "we must cohabit, and accept this reality. The world is heading toward that direction". The wedding was finally suspended after another judge revoked the original decision in late November 2009 (2009-11). Finally, on 28 December 2009, the couple got married in Ushuaia, Tierra del Fuego Province, becoming the first homosexual married couple in Latin America. They were supported by the governor of Tierra del Fuego, Fabiana Ríos, who signed a decree approving the wedding based in the judicial rule of November 2009 (2009-11). Because that decision applied only in the case presented by Freyre and Di Bello, other homosexual couples should appeal to the Judicial Power, wait for the resolution of unconstitutionality and then go to Tierra del Fuego to marry.