Bermuda's top court has ruled that legislation banning same-sex marriage was unconstitutional, rejecting a government bid to overturn an earlier court ruling that reached the same conclusion.
The ruling may still be brought before the judicial committee of the Privy Council in London - the final court of appeal for British overseas territories like Bermuda.
Appeals to the Privy Council are rare, with only one or two cases from Bermuda brought each year, according to court records seen by Reuters.
In the meantime, same-sex marriages will be allowed to resume after a pause of several months that followed the enactment of Bermuda's Domestic Partnership Act, which reversed gay marriage rights in favour of domestic partnerships.
The government, which has 21 days to appeal the ruling, has yet to make a decision on the matter.
Lawyers challenging the ban argued that the government's legislation was motivated by an attempt to appease a powerful religious lobby on the small Atlantic island of 60,000 people.
They also argued that prohibiting gay marriage violated Bermuda's 1968 constitution, which protects freedom of conscience.
Reuters
