A Petition by Petitioner X
| Jurisdiction | Northern Ireland |
| Neutral Citation | [2020] NICA 21 |
| Date | 15 April 2020 |
| Court | Court of Appeal (Northern Ireland) |
1
Neutral Citation No: [2020] NICA 21
Ref:
MOR11252
Judgment: approved by the Court for handing down
Delivered:
15/04/2020
(subject to editorial corrections)*
IN HER MAJESTY’S COURT OF APPEAL IN NORTHERN IRELAND
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ON APPEAL FROM THE HIGH COURT OF JUSTICE IN NORTHERN IRELAND
FAMILY DIVISION
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IN THE MATTER OF A PETITION BY PETITIONER X
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Before: Morgan LCJ, Stephens LJ and Sir Donnell Deeny
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MORGAN LCJ (delivering the judgment of the court)
[1] The appellant and his husband were married on 27 September 2014 in
England. The couple are British citizens domiciled in Northern Ireland. On
4 October 2014 the couple returned to Northern Ireland and have resided in this
jurisdiction thereafter. On 19 December 2014 the appellant issued a petition
pursuant to Article 31 of the Matrimonial and Family Proceedings (NI) Order 1989
(“the 1989 Order”) seeking a declaration that his marriage in London is a valid and
subsisting marriage under the law of Northern Ireland.
[2] Schedule 2, Part 1 paragraph 2(1) of the Marriage (Same Sex Couples) Act
2013 (“the 2013 Act”) provides that the appellant’s marriage under the law of
England and Wales is to be treated in Northern Ireland as a civil partnership formed
under the law of England and Wales and accordingly the appellant and his husband
are to be treated as civil partners under the law of Northern Ireland. In the
alternative, therefore, the appellant seeks a declaration that the said provision is
incompatible with Articles 8, 9 or 12 ECHR either alone or read in conjunction with
Article 14 ECHR.
[3] The learned trial judge concluded that the statutory provisions at issue did
not give rise to any breach of the Convention. In this appeal Ms Quinlivan QC and
Mr McQuitty appeared for the appellant, Dr McGleenan QC and Mr McAteer for the
Department of Finance and Personnel (“the Department”), Mr Scoffield QC and
Mr Egan for the Government Equalities Office which is part of the Department for
Education in Westminster responsible for delivering the government’s policy on
extending marriage to same-sex couples in England and Wales through the 2013 Act,
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