5,000 Canadian same-sex marriages 'not valid'
Friday 13 January 2012
Latest in Americas
From the blogs
Are you ever too young for live theatre?
It’s a pity that Dr Richard Woolfson’s research for Cow and Gate, published this week, didn’t includ...
Why always Ronaldo?
If one player in La Liga could unveil Balotelli's famous 'Why Always Me?' t-shirt this weekend, it m...
To return to Ed Miliband’s worst PMQs ever
The exchanges between Miliband and Cameron over the rail fares increase have been scored by some as ...
Online House Hunter: January cheer
Despite all the gloomy headlines, latest figures show some remarkable resilience in the UK housing m...
Around 5,000 same-sex couples married in Canada over the past seven years may be told their nuptials were never legally valid.
Divorce proceedings between an American woman and a British woman – who cannot be named for legal reasons – have exposed a restriction in Canadian law which says that non-Canadian same-sex couples cannot marry unless gay marriage is lawful in their home states or countries.
The judge presiding over the case between the women said they could not divorce because they were never married in the first place, according to a report in The Globe and Mail yesterday.
It is now thought this restriction may apply to a third of about 15,000 non-Canadian same-sex couples who have married there since 2004, when Canada began proceedings to become one of the first nations to grant equal rights for gay marriage. It was officially legalised in Canada in 2005.
Martha McCarthy, the lawyer representing the couple, said: "It is appalling that government would be taking this position without having raised it before... All the while, they were handing out licences to perform weddings." The case will be heard at the Ontario Superior Court.
- 1 At least three dead as cruise ship runs aground
- 2 Captain held as cruise ship hits rock and sinks
- 3 Tension at new high as Iran vows to punish West
- 4 Scots Wha Hae! The battle for independence
- 5 Cruise ship death toll continues to rise
- 6 Exposed: University bosses' lavish expense claims
- 7 My Secret Life: Paulo Coelho, 64, author
- 1 My Secret Life: Paulo Coelho, 64, author
- 2 So, what have the Scots ever done for us? Just 101 of the innovations Caledonia gave the world
- 3 Recently Read on The Independent
- 4 After 320 years, Paris theatre's stage hands demand égalité
- 5 Thousands of horses abandoned by owners last year
- 6 Cheese-only restaurant opens in London (just don't expect Cheddar)
- 7 The dark side of Dubai
- 8 Fury as Goldman Sachs unveils bankers' pay
- 9 Robert Fisk: The 'invented people' stand little chance
- 10 Robert Fisk: This is not about 'bad apples'. This is the horror of war
Win a Canary Island Holiday
Win a seven-night holiday for two adults to two of the Canary Islands.
Win a three-week coastal jaunt
Spend three weeks exploring every nook and cranny of gorgeous Atlantic Canada.
Win a home cinema system
Win a 40" 3D TV with a Blu-ray home cinema system to boot!
Amazing restaurant offers
Three glasses of free champagne and a special menu at 46 top London restaurants.
Commercial thought leaders
Watch the best in the business world give their insights into the world of business.
Comments