Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial ProcedureRelease 119-73
§1738C Certain acts, records, and proceedings and the effect thereof
Title 28 › Part PART V— - PROCEDURE › Chapter CHAPTER 115— - EVIDENCE; DOCUMENTARY › § 1738C
Summary
State officials must recognize and respect public acts, records, and court decisions from other States about a marriage between two people. They cannot refuse to honor those documents or deny any rights from the marriage because of the spouses’ sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin. The U.S. Attorney General or anyone harmed can sue in federal court to stop the violation. "State" has the meaning given in section 7 of title 1.
Full Legal Text
Title 28, §1738C
Judiciary and Judicial Procedure — Source: USLM XML via OLRC
(a)No person acting under color of State law may deny—
(1)full faith and credit to any public act, record, or judicial proceeding of any other State pertaining to a marriage between 2 individuals, on the basis of the sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin of those individuals; or
(2)a right or claim arising from such a marriage on the basis that such marriage would not be recognized under the law of that State on the basis of the sex, race, ethnicity, or national origin of those individuals.
(b)The Attorney General may bring a civil action in the appropriate United States district court against any person who violates subsection (a) for declaratory and injunctive relief.
(c)Any person who is harmed by a violation of subsection (a) may bring a civil action in the appropriate United States district court against the person who violated such subsection for declaratory and injunctive relief.
(d)In this section, the term “State” has the meaning given such term under section 7 of title 1.
Legislative History
Notes & Related Subsidiaries
Editorial Notes
Prior Provisions
A prior section 1738C, added Pub. L. 104–199, § 2(a), Sept. 21, 1996, 110 Stat. 2419, related to effect not required to be given to certain acts, records, and proceedings of another jurisdiction regarding marriage between persons of the same sex, prior to repeal by Pub. L. 117–228, § 3, Dec. 13, 2022, 136 Stat. 2305.
Reference
Citations & Metadata
Citation
28 U.S.C. § 1738C
Title 28 — Judiciary and Judicial Procedure
Last Updated
Apr 6, 2026
Release point: 119-73