Same-sex marriage in Puerto Rico

Recognized Same-sex marriage has been legal in Puerto Rico since July 13, 2015, as a result of the U.S. Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges.

On June 26, 2015, the court ruled that bans on same-sex marriage are unconstitutional under the Due Process and Equal Protection clauses of the United States Constitution.

Article 68 of the Civil Code also explicitly prohibited marriages "between persons of the same sex or transsexuals contracted in other jurisdictions" from being recognized in Puerto Rico.

On June 1, 2020, Governor Wanda Vázquez Garced signed into law a new civil code that repealed article 68 and removed provisions banning same-sex marriage.

[a] During a debate on civil unions in 2007, Attorney General Roberto Sánchez Ramos said it might be unconstitutional to deny marriage rights to same-sex couples.

[8] In early January 2010, Governor Luis Fortuño suggested to a group of evangelical ministers that he favored amending the Puerto Rico Constitution to restrict marriage to "the union of one man and one woman".

[13] On August 28, Christian Chaplains (Capellanes Internacionales Cristianos León de Judá) asked to be allowed to intervene in the suit on behalf of its eight members who reside in Puerto Rico.

Governor García Padilla said that "legal developments in a number of American jurisdictions point to an undeniable consensus" against the discrimination found in Puerto Rico's statutes with respect to the right of same-sex couples to marry.

[22] Governor García Padilla said he would issue an executive order requiring all Puerto Rican government agencies to implement the Obergefell ruling within 15 days.

[27] In response, Governor García Padilla said he would respect the rulings of superior courts, ensuring same-sex marriages continue in Puerto Rico.

The First Circuit also ordered that the case "be assigned randomly by the clerk to a different judge (of the lower court) to enter judgment in favor of the Petitioners promptly.

[30] While there are no records of same-sex marriages as understood from a Western perspective being performed in Native American cultures, there is evidence for identities and behaviours that may be placed on the LGBT spectrum.

Many of these cultures recognized two-spirit individuals who were born male but wore women's clothing and performed everyday household work and artistic handiwork which were regarded as belonging to the feminine sphere.

"[32] Some historians argue that there were male-bodied individuals who were identified by the fact that they wore naguas, a small cotton apron usually reserved for married women.