Smith and Chymyshyn v Knights of Columbus and others: 2005

British Columbia Human Rights Tribunal – Alesbian couple had hired a hall owned by the Roman Catholic Church and let out on its behalf by the Knights in order to hold a reception after their marriage. The hall was available for public hire and they did not know of its connections with the Church. The letting was cancelled when the Knights learned of their purpose.
Held: The Knights could not be compelled to act in a manner contrary to their core belief that same sex marriages were wrong, but they had nevertheless failed in their duty of reasonable accommodation. They did not consider the effect their actions would have on the couple, did not think of meeting them to explain the situation and apologize, or offer to reimburse them for any expenses they had incurred or to help find another solution.

Citations:

2005 BCHRT 544

Jurisdiction:

Commonwealth

Cited by:

CitedBull and Another v Hall and Another SC 27-Nov-2013
The court was asked ‘Is it lawful for a Christian hotel keeper, who sincerely believes that sexual relations outside marriage are sinful, to refuse a double-bedded room to a same sex couple?’ The defendants (Mr and Mrs Bull) appealed against a . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.

Discrimination

Updated: 15 May 2022; Ref: scu.540517