Decision on partnership must be made by parliament, not courts - Lithuanian president

VILNIUS - The decision to legally recognize partnerships in Lithuania must be made by the Seimas, not the courts, President Gitanas Nauseda said in his sixth annual State of the Nation Address to the parliament on Thursday.

"The Constitutional Court has recently made a clear statement on partnership. Despite making much noise about ambitious projects, the previous Seimas ultimately delivered nothing. This Seimas must finally make a decision that reflects the expectations of society," Nauseda said.

"The people of Lithuania should not have to wear down courtroom doorsteps to claim their rights," he added.

The president noted that Lithuanian courts "have many other pressing tasks today."

The Constitutional Court ruled on April 17 that the institution of partnership, as now defined in the Civil Code, is unconstitutional because it only provides for a union between a man and a woman and does not recognize same-sex relationships.

It also ruled unconstitutional the Civil Code provision stating that the legal regulation of cohabitation outside of marriage only takes effect once a separate law regulating the registration of partnerships comes into force.

The ruling opened the way for the direct application of the Civil Code provisions on partnership, adopted by the Seimas 24 years ago, without waiting for the parliament to pass a separate law regulating it.

This means that individuals can register their partnerships through the courts, until the parliament establishes a procedure for registering such relationships.

Lawmakers have made several unsuccessful attempts to pass a gender-neutral partnership law.