'Marry in Haste...': The (Partial) Abolition of Same-Sex Marriage in Bermuda

Barker, Nicola (2020) 'Marry in Haste...': The (Partial) Abolition of Same-Sex Marriage in Bermuda. Human Rights Law Review, 2020 (1). (In Press)

Text Barker Marry in Haste final pdf.pdf - Author Accepted Manuscript Access to this file is restricted: awaiting official publication and publisher embargo. Download (405kB)

Abstract

In 2018, the British Overseas Territory of Bermuda revoked the right to marry for same-sex couples. In a judgment that reconceives the relationship between sexual orientation and religious freedoms, the Bermuda Supreme Court and Court of Appeal found this revocation to be unconstitutional. I explore the political and legal context in which same-sex marriage was granted and then revoked in Bermuda. I also consider the Bermuda Courts’ judgments in light of the subsequent decision of the UK Supreme Court in Steinfeld, amongst others. While there was an assumption from both the Bermuda and UK governments that the revocation provision was compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights, I argue that this underestimates the significance of the distinction between declining to recognise a right to same-sex marriage and revoking a right that has already been exercised. While the European Court of Human Rights has not yet found the absence of same-sex marriage to be a violation of Article 12, I argue that the revocation of a right to marry between same-sex couples that had been recognised in accordance with national law changes the terrain on which the Convention arguments would be made.

Item Type:	Article
Uncontrolled Keywords:	same-sex marriage, Articles 12 and 14 European Convention on Human Rights, British Overseas Territories, Bermuda
Depositing User:	Symplectic Admin
Date Deposited:	29 Jan 2020 08:41
Last Modified:	19 Jan 2023 00:06
URI:	https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/id/eprint/3072324