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Same-sex marriage in Quebec

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Same-sex marriage in Quebec has been legal since March 19, 2004. Quebec became the third Canadian province (after Ontario and British Columbia) and the fifth jurisdiction in the world to open marriage to same-sex couples.

Court ruling

On March 19, 2004, the Quebec Court of Appeals ruled similarly to the Ontario and British Columbia courts, upholding Hendricks and Leboeuf v. Quebec and ordering that it take effect immediately.[1] The couple who brought the suit, Michael Hendricks and René Leboeuf, immediately sought a marriage licence; the usual 20-day waiting period was waived, and they were wed on April 1 at the Palais de justice de Montréal. The couple had brought suit against Quebec in November 2001, alleging that its refusal to perform and recognise same-sex marriage violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.[a] The Quebec Superior Court ruled in the couple's favour on September 6, 2002, though the ruling would not take effect until March 19, 2004, when the Court of Appeals ruled that same-sex marriage licenses must be issued immediately.

The Quebec decision meant that more than two-thirds of the Canadian population were living in provinces where same-sex marriage is legal. Subsequent cases, as well as federal legislation, have expanded this number to cover the entire country.

Provincial legislation

Civil unions

In 2002, the National Assembly of Quebec unanimously legalized civil unions (French: union civile) for both same-sex and opposite-sex partners.[4] The law included the right for couples in civil unions to adopt children jointly.

Marriage

In November 2004, An Act to amend the Civil Code as regards marriage (French: Loi modifiant le Code civil relativement au mariage) was enacted, replacing the words "husband and wife" with "spouses".[5] Quebec became the first province in Canada to bring its laws in line with the legalisation of same-sex marriage and add a gender-neutral definition of spouse in its marriage laws.

Marriage and civil union statistics

From 2002 to 2018, 1,183 same-sex civil unions were performed in Quebec, representing about 29% of the total 4,070 civil unions.[6] The number of same-sex unions has decreased since the legalisation of same-sex marriage in 2004. The years 2003 and 2004 saw the most unions with 156 and 274, respectively. On the other hand, the number of opposite-sex unions has increased, though has remained somewhat constant since 2008, at around 180-210 unions per year.[6]

The following table shows the number of marriages celebrated in Quebec since 2004, as per data published by the Institut de la statistique du Québec.

Number of marriages in Quebec[6]
Year Same-sex marriages Total marriages % same-sex
Female Male Total
2004 97 148 245 21,279 1.15%
2005 173 278 451 22,244 2.03%
2006 272 349 621 21,956 2.83%
2007 216 251 467 22,147 2.11%
2008 186 262 448 22,053 2.03%
2009 222 291 513 22,588 2.27%
2010 234 281 515 23,199 2.22%
2011 256 237 493 22,903 2.15%
2012 259 255 514 23,504 2.19%
2013 306 286 592 23,181 2.55%
2014 291 286 577 22,429 2.57%
2015 285 315 600 22,441 2.67%
2016 317 343 660 21,958 3.01%
2017 336 343 679 22,883 2.97%
2018 390 324 714 22,843 3.13%

Public opinion

A 2017 CROP poll showed that Quebec had the highest popular support for same-sex marriage in Canada, at 80%. Nationwide, 74% of Canadians found it "great that in Canada, two people of the same sex can get married". 26% disagreed.[7][8]

Notes

  1. ^ French: Charte canadienne des droits et libertés; Template:Lang-cr, kaschihūnh kayeh kayeh ihtūtamuwinh ekā che chī ichenahkanūt awen;[2] Template:Lang-moh.[3]

References

  1. ^ Same-sex marriage in Quebec
  2. ^ "ᐁ ᐋᐸᒋᐦᑖᑲᓅᒡ ᐁᑎ ᐃᑎᔅᑳᓀᓯᒥᑯᒡ ᐊᔨᒧᐧᐃᓐ ᐁ ᐅᐦᒋ ᓂᔥᑐᐧᐄᔥᑕᑲᓅᒡ ᒉᐧᑳᓐ ᐊᓂᑌᐦ ᒋᔐᐅᒋᒫᐅᐧᐋᔅᑳᐦᐄᑲᓐ ᑲᔦᐦ ᐊᓂᒌ ᑳ ᒫᒨᐱᔥᑕᐧᑳᐤᐦ". ourcommons.ca (in Cree).
  3. ^ "Tiohtià:ke Aoianerénhsera ne Iakoianerenhserá:wis tánon Iakoterihwaíen:nis" (PDF). ville.montreal.qc.ca (in Mohawk).
  4. ^ "Bill n°84 : An Act instituting civil unions and establishing new rules of filiation". National Assembly of Quebec. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  5. ^ "Bill n°59 : An Act to amend the Civil Code as regards marriage". National Assembly of Quebec. Retrieved February 12, 2016.
  6. ^ a b c "Mariages et unions civiles selon le sexe des conjoints, Québec, 2002-2018". Institut de la statistique du Québec (in French).
  7. ^ I find it great that in our society, two people of the same sex can get married, CROP Panorama
  8. ^ Are you in favour of same-sex marriage? 74% of Canadians and 80% of Quebecers support it (and Death in Venice by Benjamin Britten)