Confirming (the Illusion of) Heterosexual Marriage: Hämäläinen v Finland

Abstract

On 16 July 2014, the European Court of Human Rights sitting as a Grand Chamber issued its most recent ruling regarding transsexuality and marriage. The question before the Court was whether a transsexual woman, who had married another woman before her gender transition, had the right to obtain full legal recognition of her gender without putting an end to their marriage. The answer given by the Court was not only a rejection of the applicant’s claim; it was also a decision that called into question the Court’s own conception of heterosexual marriage.