Reference re Same-Sex Marriage
Canada Supreme Court
3 S.C.R. 698, 2004 SCC 79 (2004)
- Written by Mary Katherine Cunningham, JD
Facts
Starting in 2003, provincial governments in Canada enacted legislation legalizing same-sex marriage. The appellate courts in these provinces heard challenges to the constitutionality of this legislation recognizing same-sex marriages. In response, the federal government asked the Canada Supreme Court to hear a reference question on the constitutionality of the “Proposal for an Act respecting certain aspects of legal capacity for marriage for civil purposes” (the proposed act). Section 1 1 of the proposed act aimed to establish marriage as a civil institution lacking gendered language. Various groups and individuals intervened in the case. Some of the intervenors argued that the federal government would exceed its constitutional powers with the proposed act because the legal definition of marriage necessarily incorporated an opposite-sex requirement. Other intervenors argued that the Constitutional Act entrenched the definition of marriage as understood in 1867 and as articulated in Hyde v. Hyde.
Rule of Law
Issue
Holding and Reasoning (Per curiam)
What to do next…
Here's why 811,000 law students have relied on our case briefs:
- Written by law professors and practitioners, not other law students. 46,300 briefs, keyed to 988 casebooks. Top-notch customer support.
- The right amount of information, includes the facts, issues, rule of law, holding and reasoning, and any concurrences and dissents.
- Access in your classes, works on your mobile and tablet. Massive library of related video lessons and high quality multiple-choice questions.
- Easy to use, uniform format for every case brief. Written in plain English, not in legalese. Our briefs summarize and simplify; they don’t just repeat the court’s language.
