Brazil court considers same-sex civil union rights

[Judi Lynn]

Source: Agence France-Presse

Brazil court considers same-sex civil union rights
Updated 1 hour 19 minutes ago

Brazil's high court has formally opened deliberations on granting gays and lesbians the right to form civil unions, and on guaranteeing them the same legal rights as other couples.

President Dilma Rousseff's top prosecutor, attorney general Roberto Gurgel, has backed the plan.

"When the state refuses to recognise a homosexual (civil) union, it is sacrificing rights that parties to that union have," Mr Gurgel argued.

Though deliberations began on Wednesday, the actual hearing on the case before the court was postponed until Thursday.

Read more: http://www.abc.net.au/news/stories/2011/05/05/3208987.htm?section=justin

[murphyj87]

1. Argentina and Canada........

On 22 July 2010, Argentina became the first country in Latin America to legalize gay marriage. The law also allows same-sex couples to adopt.


On 20 July 2005, the Canadian Parliament (a Liberal party minority government) passed the Civil Marriage Act, defining marriage nationwide as "the lawful union of two persons to the exclusion of all others." The two persons may either be both male, both female, or a male and a female.