Court Blocks Gay Divorce in Texas

The Texas fifth court of appeals ruled Tuesday that gay and lesbian couples cannot divorce in Texas if they were married outside the state.

The court ruled that state district judge Tena Callahan in Dallas overstepped her jurisdiction when she ruled a gay couple who married in Massachusetts in 2006 could get a divorce in Texas, The Dallas Morning News reports. Callahan ruled that Texas's ban on same-sex marriage violated the U.S. Constitution's Fourteenth Amendment guarantee of equal protection, but the appeals court reversed that decision.

The men, identified as J.B. and H.B., returned to Dallas after their wedding in 2006 but separated two years later. J.B. sued in January 2008 to dissolve their marriage.

"We are disappointed with the justices' decision," J.B.'s attorney Peter Schulte said Tuesday, "but we respect the court and process and are evaluating our options about moving forward."