A TOP judicial panel has cleared the way for same-sex marriage in Brazil, ruling that gay couples cannot be denied marriage licenses.

The National Council of Justice, which oversees the Brazilian judicial system and is headed by the chief justice of the Supreme Court, on Tuesday said government offices that issue marriage licenses had no standing to reject gay couples.

"This is the equivalent of authorising homosexual marriage in Brazil," said Raquel Pereira de Castro Araujo, head of the human rights committee of the Brazilian bar association.

The Brazilian Congress, where a strong religious faction opposes same sex marriage, has not yet approved a law legalising gay marriages. And the council's decisions are subject to appeal before the Supreme Court.

But Supreme Court Chief Justice Joaquim Barbosa said there was no reason for the government's marriage licensing offices to wait for the Brazilian Congress to pass a law authorising same-sex marriage before extending the right to gays.

He noted that the Supreme Court in 2011 recognised stable homosexual unions, ruling that the constitution guaranteed them the same rights as heterosexual couples.

The Supreme Court decision "is binding" and should be followed by the lower courts, he said.

Some offices have granted marriage licenses to gay couples and others have not. While some state courts have recognised same-sex marriages, the council's decision was the first to set a national standard.

AFP a

Originally published as Brazil clears way for gay marriage