of Marriage Act (DOMA), a statute defining marriage as being between one man and one woman for federal purposes and allowed states to refuse to recognize same-sex marriages performed in other states. Whether the latter provision of DOMA violated the Full Faith and Credit Clause was debated among legal commentators. Some scholars viewed DOMA as a violation of the Full Faith and Credit Clause. Other legal scholars disagreed. Ultimately, the U.S. Supreme Court in United States v. Windsor struck down DOMA as a violation of the Constitution's Equal Protection Clause and did not address the Full Faith and Credit Clause in its decision. In March 2016, the Supreme Court ruled in V.L. v. E.L. that under the Full Faith and Credit Clause, the State of Alabama must recognize the adoption decree granted to a same-sex couple by a Georgia state court in 2007, regardless of how that court came to its conclusion granting the decree. The Respect for Marriage Act repealed the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and required the U.S. federal government to recognize the validity of same-sex and interracial marriages in the United States, and to protect religious liberty. Its author, Senator Tammy Baldwin, has stated that its constitutional authority stems from the full faith and credit clause. Global influence The wording of this clause was closely followed by the framers of the Constitution of Australia, namely, in Section 118 of the Constitution of Australia. References Further reading Full Faith and Credit, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Full Faith and Credit Provision of the Violence Against Women Act by Delaware State A guide to Full Faith and Credit concerns in the Mid-Atlantic Region by Delaware State Mountain Pride Media article 2013 – Ohio Judge Validates Same Sex Marriage Solemnized in Maryland External links Transcription of the US Constitution at the National Archives Article Four of the United States Constitution Clauses of the United States Constitution Federalism in the United States