France's Constitutional Council on Friday approved a gay-marriage bill passed by parliament on April 23, rejecting a challenge to the legislation launched by the main opposition party, reports FRANCE 24.
France's parliament approved the bill in a third and final vote on April 23, but the Union for a Popular Movement (UMP) party of former president Nicolas Sarkozy immediately launched a challenge to the bill on constitutional grounds.
President François Hollande is expected to sign the bill into law next week, marking the final step in legalising marriage and adoption for same-sex couples in France. Hollande, who promised to support "marriage for all" throughout his presidential campaign, has said he would sign the bill as soon as the court had ruled.
A Constitutional Council statement added a caveat, however, saying the legality of gay adoption did not establish the "right to a child" and emphasising that the interests of the children involved would continue to be the overriding consideration.
Read more of this report from FRANCE 24.
See also: The pride and prejudice as France adopts same-sex marriage law