Even Antigay E.U. Nations Must Now Recognize Same-Sex Couples

The highest court in the European Union has issued a groundbreaking ruling on LGBT rights.

The European Court of Justice has determined that all member states must recognize the rights of same-sex spouses -- even in countries where same-sex marriage is not legal.

The ruling came about after Romanian officials refused to grant residency to Claibourn Hamilton, an American who married his Romanian partner, Adrian Coman, in Brussels in 2010, reports The Guardian. The country does not recognize any form of legal union between those of the same gender.

The same-sex couple, alleging discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation, challenged the decision of Romanian authorities. The case was eventually referred to the Luxembourg court.

The court's decision stated that while E.U. countries may keep "the freedom whether or not to authorise marriage between persons of the same sex, they may not obstruct the freedom of residence of an E.U. citizen by refusing to grant his same-sex spouse, a national of a country that is not an E.U. member state, a derived right of residence in their territory."

Under the E.U.'s 2004 freedom of movement principle, member states are required to grant residency to citizens' spouses from non-E.U. countries. Previously, the term "spouse" had been undefined. In this new ruling, the court concluded that "spouse" is gender-neutral and "may therefore cover the same-sex spouse of an EU citizen."

In an interview with The Guardian, Hamilton said he was "truly elated" by the decision. Coman embraced it as a win for "human dignity."

"We can now look in the eyes of any public official in Romania and across the EU with certainty that our relationship is equally valuable and equally relevant, for the purpose of free movement within the EU," Coman said. "We are grateful to the EU court and to the many people and institutions who have supported us, and through us, other same-sex couples in a similar situation. It is human dignity that wins today."

The majority of E.U. nations have marriage equality, but some offer civil unions with equivalent or limited rights. In addition to Romania, other E.U. countries that have no legislation recognizing same-sex unions or marriages include Poland, Lithuania, Latvia, Slovakia, and Bulgaria.

In January, Melchior Wathelet, the advocate general of the ECJ, issued an opinion similar to this week's ruling. He said member states "may not impede the freedom of residence of an E.U. citizen by refusing to grant his or her spouse of the same sex, a national of a non-E.U. country, a right of permanent residence in their territory." The opinions of advocate generals are nonbinding, but are generally followed by the ECJ in its rulings.