ABSTRACT
In 1997, Ward LJ wrote that 'the tide in favour of equality (for gays and lesbians) rolls relentlessly forward and shows no signs of ebbing'.1 In
A. Section 15(1) Charter Challenges In Law v Canada?® the Supreme Court outlined three steps to be followed in determining whether section 15(1) has been breached.41 First, the claimant must prove that there is differential treatment, which is assessed by asking whether the impugned government action draws a distinction on the basis of a personal characteristic (formal inequality), or fails to take account of the claimant's already disadvantaged position within Canadian society (substantive inequality). Second, the claimant must prove that the differential treatment is based on an enumerated or analogous ground of discrimination.42 Third, the claimant must prove that the differential treatment is substantively discriminatory, which is assessed by asking whether the impugned provision impairs human dignity.
