Tennessee § 36-3-113 - Marriage between one man and one woman only legally recognized marital contract. [See Compiler's Note.]

§ 36-3-113. Marriage between one man and one woman only legally recognized marital contract. [See Compiler's Note.]

Tennessee's marriage licensing laws reinforce, carry forward, and make explicit the long-standing public policy of this state to recognize the family as essential to social and economic order and the common good and as the fundamental building block of our society. To that end, it is further the public policy of this state that the historical institution and legal contract solemnizing the relationship of one (1) man and one (1) woman shall be the only legally recognized marital contract in this state in order to provide the unique and exclusive rights and privileges to marriage. The legal union in matrimony of only one (1) man and one (1) woman shall be the only recognized marriage in this state. Any policy, law or judicial interpretation that purports to define marriage as anything other than the historical institution and legal contract between one (1) man and one (1) woman is contrary to the public policy of Tennessee. If another state or foreign jurisdiction issues a license for persons to marry, which marriages are prohibited in this state, any such marriage shall be void and unenforceable in this state. Acts 1996, ch. 1031, § 1. Compiler's Notes. In Obergefell, et al. v. Hodges , — U.S. —, 135 S. Ct. 2584 , 192 L. Ed. 2 d 609, 2015 U.S. LEXIS 4250 (U.S. 2015), the United States Supreme Court declared this section to be invalid to the extent that it excludes same-sex couples from civil marriage on the same terms and conditions as opposite sex couples, holding that same-sex couples have a fundamental right to marry in all states and that there is no lawful basis for a state to refuse to recognize a lawful same-sex marriage performed in another state on the ground of its same-sex character. Law Reviews. Deviant to Dignified: From Campbell v. Sundquist to Tanco v. Haslam — The Progression of LGBT Rights & Marital Equality in Tennessee, 83 Tenn. L. Rev. 371 (2016). Does Tennessee's Constitution Require Permitting Same-Gender Marriages? (J. Ammon Smartt), 36 U. Mem. L. Rev. 413 (2006). Due Process and Equal Protection: A Constitutional Approach To Same-Sex Marriage, 5 Tenn. J. L. & Pol'y 71 (2009). Equal Justice for Same-Sex Married Couples: Reflections by a Tennessee Lawyer Who Helped Achieve National Marriage Equality, 46 U. Mem. L. Rev. 175 (2015). The Legal Regulation of Gay and Lesbian Families as Interstate Immigration Law, 65 Vand. L. Rev. En Banc 11 (2012). The Marrying Kind, 83 Tenn. L. Rev. 83 (2015). Attorney General Opinions. Constitutionality, OAG 96-016, 1996 Tenn. AG LEXIS 11 (2/13/96). T.C.A. § 36-3-113 precludes recognition of same-sex domestic partnerships or civil unions granted by another state or foreign jurisdiction for the purpose of bestowing the rights, benefits and privileges of marriage in Tennessee, OAG 04-066, 2004 Tenn. AG LEXIS 69 (4/19/04).