The Grand Chamber of the Council of State (Greece’s highest administrative court) said “yes” to the conclusion of marriage between persons of the same sex, as established for the first time by Law 5089/2024. As a consequence, the right to adoption is extended to married same-sex couples.

At the same time, Law 5089/2024 on equality in civil marriage and the amendment of the Civil Code was deemed constitutional.

The case considered by the Grand Chamber was discussed on April 11, 2025, with State Councilor Anastasia-Maria Papadimitriou as the rapporteur.

The President of the Council of State, Michalis Pikramenos, stated in an announcement following today’s closed-door plenary session that the Grand Chamber, by majority vote, ruled that:
“The provisions of Law 5089/2024, which extended the possibility of civil marriage to same-sex couples, with the direct consequence of allowing them to adopt — either jointly or one spouse adopting the biological or adopted child of the other — do not violate the constitutional provisions on the protection of marriage, the family, motherhood, and childhood (Article 21 §1) or on equality (Article 4 §1).”

In other words, the majority of the Plenary held that the recognition of the right of same-sex couples to marry, and their corresponding right to adopt children (either jointly or individually, including one spouse adopting the legal child — biological or adopted — of the other), is in line with the constitutional provisions of Article 21 §1 (on the protection of the family, marriage, motherhood, and childhood) and Article 4 §1 (on equality).

Dismissal of Appeals from Three Associations

Following this ruling, the Council of State dismissed the annulment applications filed against decision no. 15796/20.2.2024 of the Minister of the Interior, which regulates how spouses and parents are recorded on civil registry documents (birth, marriage, and death certificates). This ministerial decision was issued under the authority granted by Article 12 §1 of Law 5089/2024.

The appeals had been submitted by three associations active in matters of childhood, etc., whose founding charters include objectives such as supporting the institution of the family and marriage and encouraging childbirth in accordance with Greek Orthodox tradition, and more broadly, defending the Orthodox faith.

During the hearing, the National Commission for Human Rights (NCHR) intervened in support of the contested regulation.

The appellants argued, among other things, that the contested law fundamentally alters the institution of the family to the point of including same-sex couples and same-sex parents — something they claimed is in direct conflict with Article 21 of the Constitution, which states that the family is the foundation of the preservation and advancement of the Nation, and that marriage, motherhood, and childhood are under state protection.