''Halpern v Canada (AG)'',

003 003, O03, 0O3, OO3 may refer to: * 003, former emergency telephone number for the Norwegian ambulance service (until 1986) * 1990 OO3, the asteroid 6131 Towen * OO3 gauge model railway * ''O03 (O2)'' and other related blood type alleles in the AB ...

O.J. No. 2268 is a June 10, 2003 decision of the

Court of Appeal for Ontario The Court of Appeal for Ontario (frequently mistakenly referred to as the Ontario Court of Appeal) (ONCA is the abbreviation for its neutral citation) is the appellate court for the province of Ontario, Canada. The seat of the court is Osgoode Ha ...

in which the Court found that the

common law Common law (also known as judicial precedent, judge-made law, or case law) is the body of law primarily developed through judicial decisions rather than statutes. Although common law may incorporate certain statutes, it is largely based on prece ...

definition of

marriage Marriage, also called matrimony or wedlock, is a culturally and often legally recognised union between people called spouses. It establishes rights and obligations between them, as well as between them and their children (if any), and b ...

, which defined marriage as between one man and one woman, violated section 15 of the

Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms The ''Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms'' (), often simply referred to as the ''Charter'' in Canada, is a bill of rights entrenched in the Constitution of Canada, forming the first part of the '' Constitution Act, 1982''. The ''Char ...

Background

The roots of the case began in December 2000 at the Metropolitan Community Church of Toronto, when pastor

Brent Hawkes Brent Hawkes (born June 2, 1950) is a Canadian gay rights activist and clergyman at the Metropolitan Community Church (MCC), also known as the Universal Fellowship of Metropolitan Community Churches (UFMCC), which is an international LGBT-affirmi ...

began issuing

banns of marriage The banns of marriage, commonly known simply as the "banns" or "bans" (from a Middle English word meaning "proclamation", rooted in Frankish and thence in Old French), are the public announcement in a Christian parish church, or in the town cou ...

in advance of performing wedding ceremonies for two same-sex couples—Kevin Bourassa and Joe Varnell, and Anne and Elaine Vautour—on January 14, 2001."Same-sex couples preparing to tie knot: Weddings tomorrow". ''

National Post The ''National Post'' is a Canadian English-language broadsheet newspaper and the flagship publication of the American-owned Postmedia Network. It is published Mondays through Saturdays, with Monday released as a digital e-edition only.

'', January 13, 2001. Because banns of marriage are accepted as a fully legal way to perform a marriage without the need for a city-issued

marriage license A marriage license (or marriage licence in Commonwealth spelling) is a document issued, either by a religious organization or state authority, authorizing a couple to marry. The procedure for obtaining a license varies between jurisdictions ...

, but marriages performed under either process require certification by the provincial registrar, the banns created a legal vacuum that would force a court case. Over the course of the year several other same-sex couples, among them Hedy Halpern and Colleen Rogers, and

Michael Leshner and Michael Stark Michael Leshner (born April 8, 1948) and Michael Stark (born ), also known as The Michaels, are the men who in 2003 entered into the first legal same-sex marriage in Canada. They were consequently named the Canadian Newsmakers of the Year by ''T ...

, joined the court challenge, which began hearings at the

Ontario Superior Court The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges ...

in November 2001.

Superior Court ruling

On July 12, 2002, the Superior Court ruled that marriage rights must be extended to same-sex couples, but it suspended the ruling for a period of two years to permit the

Legislative Assembly of Ontario The Legislative Assembly of Ontario (OLA; ) is the legislative chamber of the Canadian province of Ontario. Its elected members are known as Members of Provincial Parliament (MPPs). Bills passed by the Legislative Assembly are given royal as ...

time to comply with the ruling through the legislative process. However, as the

Constitution of Canada The Constitution of Canada () is the supreme law in Canada. It outlines Canada's system of government and the civil and human rights of those who are citizens of Canada and non-citizens in Canada. Its contents are an amalgamation of various ...

provides that the definition of marriage is under federal jurisdiction while only the implementation is left to the provinces, the decision left the situation unclear until the government of

Jean Chrétien Joseph Jacques Jean Chrétien (; born January 11, 1934) is a retired Canadian politician, statesman, and lawyer who served as the 20th prime minister of Canada from 1993 to 2003. He served as Leader of the Liberal Party of Canada, leader of t ...

announced on July 29 that they would appeal.

Court of Appeal

The Ontario Court of Appeal handed down its ruling on June 10, 2003."Appeals court declares same-sex marriage protected: Two Ontario men become legally married". ''

Sudbury Star ''The Sudbury Star'' is a Canadian daily regional newspaper published in Sudbury, Ontario. It is owned by the media company, Postmedia. It is the largest daily paper in Northeastern Ontario by circulation. History The ''Sudbury Star'' began ...

'', June 11, 2003. The unanimous Court found that the exclusion of same-sex couples was a clear violation of the ''Charter'' and moreover did not constitute a "reasonable infringement" under section 1. In this respect the judgment followed much of what had been ruled elsewhere. The court also held that there was to be no suspension of the remedy as it applied to the general population, and that the new definition allowing same-sex couples to marry would take effect immediately.

Results

Leshner and Stark became the first gay couple to be issued a marriage license after the decision, while Bourassa and Varnell and the Vautours became the first legally recognized same-sex marriages overall since their marriages were deemed legal as of the date of the original ceremonies. A few months later, however, Bourassa and Varnell were denied entry to the

United States The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...

when travelling to attend a human rights conference, because the United States Customs agent refused to accept the validity of their marriage. In the next two years following the decision, courts in seven of Canada's other nine provinces and one of its three territories also legalized same-sex marriage in their jurisdictions before the

Parliament of Canada The Parliament of Canada () is the Canadian federalism, federal legislature of Canada. The Monarchy of Canada, Crown, along with two chambers: the Senate of Canada, Senate and the House of Commons of Canada, House of Commons, form the Bicameral ...

passed the '' Civil Marriage Act'' in 2005. ''

The Globe and Mail ''The Globe and Mail'' is a Newspapers in Canada, Canadian newspaper printed in five cities in Western Canada, western and central Canada. With a weekly readership of more than 6 million in 2024, it is Canada's most widely read newspaper on week ...

'', in choosing the "Nation Builders of the year," selected the judges involved in the case, namely Chief Justice

Roy McMurtry Roland Roy McMurtry (May 31, 1932 – March 18, 2024) was a Canadian lawyer, judge and politician in Ontario. He was a Progressive Conservative member of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario from 1975 to 1985, serving in the cabinet of Bill Dav ...

, Eileen Gillese and James MacPherson, while the Canadian edition of ''

Time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

'' selected Stark and Leshner as its Canadian newsmakers of the year."Gay couple named newsmaker". '' The Western Star'', December 22, 2003.

References

External links

Text of the rulingSummary of the decision from EGALE CanadaSummary of earlier ruling appealed in ''Halpern''
{{LGBT in Canada Section Fifteen Charter case law Canadian same-sex marriage case law 2003 in LGBTQ history 2003 in Canadian case law Same-sex union case law LGBTQ history in Ontario Court of Appeal for Ontario cases 2003 in Ontario