A Kentucky judge who raised moral objections to hearing adoption cases involving same-sex couples plans to resign from the bench in a move he hopes will end a disciplinary case against him, according to a document released Thursday.

In his written response to charges that he violated judicial rules, Judge W. Mitchell Nance informed the state’s judicial disciplinary commission of his resignation, effective in mid-December. Nance also sent a resignation letter to Gov. Matt Bevin, who will appoint his replacement.

Civil rights advocates had urged Nance’s ouster after he declared that “under no circumstance” would a child’s adoption by same-sex couples be in the youngster’s best interest.

The judge, citing religious objections, filed an order in April that signaled his unwillingness to handle adoption cases involving gay and lesbian adults. Nance hears family court cases in Barren and Metcalfe counties, a rural stretch in south-central Kentucky.

Gay-rights activist Chris Hartman said Thursday that Nance’s impending resignation serves as a strong reminder for judges to “do their job or get off the bench.”

“I hope it sends a message that fairness and justice must be applied equally,” said Hartman, director of the Fairness Campaign, an LGBT advocacy group based in Louisville. “And that judges whose conscience conflicts with their duties must resign the bench if they cannot deliver that basic fairness and justice.”

As carried in ABC