Judgment of The Federal Court of Canada, Trial Division
The Trial Judge held that although the definition of spouse, as defined in section 2 of the Old Age Security Act, created a distinction it was merely a distinction between spouses and "non-spouses" (e.g. siblings), the latter being a group which Parliament had allegedly not intended to confer similar benefits upon. The Trial Judge asserted that the distinction between spouses and "non-spouses" had nothing to do with sexual orientation and, therefore, could not constitute discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation. The application was dismissed. This decision was appealed by the plaintiff to the Federal Court of Appeal.
Read more about this topic: Egan V. Canada
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