When was gay marriage legalized in ontario

Ontario courts legalize lgbtq+ marriage; other courts trail

June 10, 2003

Court of Appeal allows marriage ceremonies to take place immediately

With its decision in Halpern v. Ontario, the Ontario Court of Appeal became the second provincial appellate court in Canada to uphold a right to same-sex marriage, and the first to allow marriage ceremonies to take place.

Background

Two Ontario cases raising the question of same-sex marriage were heard by the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Divisional Court) in November 2001. In the first case, eight lgbtq+ couples sought the right to marry. In the second case, the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto sought to have the marriages it had performed for two same sex couples recognized by the state. Egale Canada intervened in both cases to support the couples and MCCT.

In July 2002, the Divisional Court concluded that the common law prevent to same-sex marriage breached the equality rights of gays and lesbians under s. 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Court further held that the government had not justified the discrimination under s. 1 of the Charter.

However, the judges of the lower court disagreed on

In 2005, the Marriage for Civil Purposes Act,[i] also known as Bill C-38, became law. This Act gives same-sex couples the legal right to marry, making Canada only the fourth country in the world to legalize same-sex marriages.[ii] Prior to this enactment, the courts in eight provinces[iii] struck down the traditional definition of marriage as a violation of section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.[iv]

Traditional Definition of Marriage

The traditional definition of marriage was "the lawful union of one man and one woman to the exclusion of all others." In other words, only two people of distinct sexes could legally marry.[v]

Evolution of the Right to Same-Sex Marriage: A Short History

(a) Halpern v. Canada

The first landmark case was Halpern v. Canada[vi]. In this case, two same-sex couples were married in a religious ceremony at a Christian Church. The Ontario government, however, refused to register the marriages, arguing that the legal definition of marriage did not contain same-sex marriages. The couples took the issue to court.

The Ontario Court of Appeal concluded that the traditional definition of marriage was a violation of th

Equal Marriage

These are selected shorts from the Nancy Nicol collection. Other interviews on the campaign for equal marriage are available on site at the CLGA, and include the following people:

Laurie Arron (Canadians for Matching Marriage, Egale Canada)

Joseph Arvay (Q.C. human rights lawyer for B.C. couples in the same-sex marriage litigation)

Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell (couple married at MCCT on January 14, 2001, litigants in same-sex marriage case in Ontario, Canadians for Equal Marriage, authors of Just Married, 2002

Libby Davies, (Federal MP, Home Leader for the NDP at the time of the debate on marriage equality)

Douglas Elliott (lawyer representing MCCT in the equal marriage case)

Barbara Findlay (lawyer representing B.C. litigants in the equivalent marriage case)

John Fisher (Egale Canada, primary author: Outlaws and Inlaws: Your Manual to LGBT rights, Same-sex Relationships and Canadian Law, Egale Canada, 2004)

Jane Hamilton and Joy Masuhara (B.C. litigants in equal marriage case)

Mark Holland (Federal MP, House leader for the Liberals at the time of the debate on marriage equality); Avvy Go (Asian Canadians for Equal Marriage)

Rev. Dr. Brent Hawkes, (perfor
when was gay marriage legalized in ontario

Census in Brief
Same-sex couples in Canada in 2016 Census in Brief
Same-sex couples in Canada in 2016

Highlights

  • According to the 2016 Census, there were 72,880 same‑sex couples in Canada in 2016, representing 0.9% of all couples.
  • From 2006 to 2016, the number of same‑sex couples increased much more rapidly (+60.7%) than the number of opposite‑sex couples (+9.6%).
  • One‑third (33.4%) of all same‑sex couples in Canada in 2016 were married.
  • Although Ontario had the most same‑sex couples (26,585), Quebec had a higher number relative to its population. Among provinces, Quebec also had the lowest percentage of married same‑sex couples.
  • Half of all same‑sex couples in Canada were living in four of the country’s five largest census metropolitan areas: Toronto, Montréal, Vancouver, and Ottawa–Gatineau.
  • About one in eight same‑sex couples (12.0%) had children living with them in 2016, compared with about half of opposite‑sex couples.

Introduction

The Census of Population provides vital information on small population groups with diverse characteristics. One of these groups is same‑s

Civil Marriage Act

S.C. 2005, c. 33

Assented to 2005-07-20

An Act respecting certain aspects of legal capacity for marriage for civil purposes

Preamble

WHEREAS the Parliament of Canada is committed to upholding the Constitution of Canada, and section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees that every individual is equivalent before and under the law and has the right to equal protection and equal profit of the commandment without discrimination;

WHEREAS the courts in a majority of the provinces and in one territory hold recognized that the right to equality without discrimination requires that couples of the same sex and couples of the opposite sex have equal access to marriage for civil purposes;

WHEREAS the Supreme Court of Canada has commended that many Canadian couples of the same sex hold married in reliance on those court decisions;

WHEREAS only matching access to marriage for civil purposes would respect the right of couples of the matching sex to equality without discrimination, and civil union, as an institution other than marriage, would not offer them that equal access and would violate their human dignity, in breach of the Canadian Charter of Rights and