The applicants, two same-sex couples who had entered into civil partnerships in 2005, challenged the lawfulness of Article 6 of the Marriage (NI) Order 2003, which prohibits marriage if both parties are of the same sex. Their ambition to marry had been frustrated by the refusal of the Northern Ireland Assembly to pass legislation to permit same-sex marriage; and they argued that Article 6 of the 2003 Order unlawfully discriminated against them on the basis of sexual orientation, contrary to the Human Rights Act 1998 and Articles 8 (right to respect for private and family life), 12 (right to marry) and 14 (prohibition of discrimination) ECHR.

Citing Schalk and Kopf v Austria [2010] ECHR 995 and Oliari and Others v Italy [2015] ECHR 716, O'Hara J pointed out that the European Court of Human Rights had not imposed any obligation on state parties to introduce same-sex marriage. It required some mechanism for legal recognition of same-sex relationships; but that recognition already existed in Northern Ireland in the form of the civil partnership. He noted that the ECtHR has had three opportunities to consider the issue during this decade and has turned its face firmly against it. On the basis of the Strasbourg case law, the Convention rights of the applicants had not been violated. The application was dismissed. [Frank Cranmer]