Justifiable Discrimination - The Case of Opposite-Sex Civil Partnerships

Hayward, A.

doi:10.1017/s0008197317000502

Justifiable Discrimination - The Case of Opposite-Sex Civil Partnerships

Hayward, A.

Authors

Dr Andy Hayward a.p.hayward@durham.ac.uk
Associate Professor

Abstract

OPPOSITE-SEX couples are prohibited from forming a civil partnership. Following the introduction of same-sex marriage, the Civil Partnership Act 2004 was not extended to opposite-sex couples, resulting in the unusual position that English law permits same-sex couples access to two relationship forms (marriage and civil partnership) yet limits opposite-sex couples to one (marriage). This discrimination was recently challenged in the courts by an opposite-sex couple, Rebecca Steinfeld and Charles Keidan, who wish to enter a civil partnership owing to their deeply-rooted ideological opposition to marriage. Rejecting marriage as a patriarchal institution and believing that a civil partnership would offer a more egalitarian public expression of their relationship, the couple argued that the current ban constitutes a breach of Article 14 read in conjunction with Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.

Citation

Hayward, A. (2017). Justifiable Discrimination - The Case of Opposite-Sex Civil Partnerships. Cambridge Law Journal, 76(2), 243-246. https://doi.org/10.1017/s0008197317000502

Journal Article Type	Article
Acceptance Date	May 10, 2017
Online Publication Date	Jul 12, 2017
Publication Date	Jun 1, 2017
Deposit Date	May 10, 2017
Publicly Available Date	May 30, 2017
Journal	Cambridge Law Journal
Print ISSN	0008-1973
Electronic ISSN	1469-2139
Publisher	Cambridge University Press
Peer Reviewed	Not Peer Reviewed
Volume	76
Issue	2
Pages	243-246
DOI	https://doi.org/10.1017/s0008197317000502

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Copyright Statement
This article has been accepted for publication and will appear in a revised form in The Cambridge Law Journal https://doi.org/10.1017/S0008197317000502. This version is free to view and download for private research and study only. Not for re-distribution, re-sale or use in derivative works. © Cambridge Law Journal and Contributors 2017.