In June 2002, the Assemblée nationale du Québec unanimously adopted the Act instituting civil unions and rules for establishing new filiation, creating a new institution: civil union.

Civil union was designed to benefit the couples, formed of people of different or same genders, who wish to make a public commitment to live together and respect the resulting rights and obligations.

With civil union, Québec law now recognizes three types of conjugal unions: marriage, de facto union and civil union.

The Act instituting civil unions and rules for establishing new filiation reaffirms the principale of the equality of all citizens of Québec and specifies the conditions for forming, celebrating, recording and dissolving this union, as well as its civil consequences.

The civil union is equivalent to marriage, its form and legal consequences. In fact, the rights and obligations arising out of a civil union are the same as those resulting from marriage. However, there are a few differences between these two institutions. These differences concern the age required to form a civil union, the gender of the spouses and the process for dissolving a civil union.

On 11 April 2000, the Canadian Parliament also sanctioned an Act recognizing same-sex couples, providing them with rights and responsibilities equal to those of heterosexual married couples.

On June 10, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled that the opposite-sex requirement for marriage is unconstitutional and directed that marriage in the province of Ontario be open to same-sex couples. The Court stated that its decision does not in any way deal or interfere with the religious institution of marriage. The Court ordered its decision to take effect immediately.

The Ontario decision follows on a similar decision of the British Columbia Court of Appeal on May 1 of this year. Although the British Columbia decision originally gave Parliament until July 12, 2004, to change its legislation to fit this new definition, it lifted that suspension order on July 8, effectively allowing same-sex couples to marry in that province immediately. Another similar decision of the Quebec Superior Court allowed same-sex marriages effective September 2004. The Quebec case is still before the Quebec Court of Appeal.

On June 17, 2003, the Prime Minister announced that the Government of Canada would not appeal the decisions of the courts of appeal in British Columbia and Ontario on the definition of marriage. On July 15, 2003, the Government of Canada also withdrew its appeal from the Quebec case.

Further, the Prime Minister announced that the Government of Canada would draft legislation to legally recognize the union of same-sex couples, while recognizing the freedom of churches and religious organizations not to perform marriages against their beliefs. He also indicated that the draft legislation would be referred to the Supreme Court of Canada to ensure its constitutionality.

For more information about the status of same sex marriage, please consult the Department of Justice website.