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38 New. Eng. L. Rev. 505 (2003-2004)
The Massachusetts Same-Sex Marriage Case: Could Decisions from Canada, Europe, and South Africa Help the SJC

handle is hein.journals/newlr38 and id is 527 raw text is: THE MASSACHUSETTS SAME-SEX MARRIAGE CASE: COULD DECISIONS FROM CANADA, EUROPE, AND SOUTH AFRICA HELP THE SJC? Robert Wintemute* Thank you. Kees Waaldijk has just told us about legislative developments in Europe. When a minority is suffering discrimination, the easiest way to end it is to go to the legislature, point it out, and say, Could we please have a law ending this? However, as we know, often the legislature will say, Sorry, we're not interested. We are elected by a majority that doesn't care about your issue. So the minority has to go off to court and ask the court to enforce a constitutional bill of rights or an international human rights treaty. For me, that is the exact purpose of a constitutional bill of rights. It constitutes a set of principles for a society * Professor of human rights law in the School of Law, King's College, University of London, United Kingdom. Originally from Calgary, Professor Wintemute received his B.A. from the University of Alberta in Edmonton and Universit Laval in Quebec City, his L.L.B. (Common Law) and B.C.L. (Civil Law) from McGill University in Montrfal, and his Ph.D. from the University of Oxford. He is a member of the Bar of New York State and of LEGAL-GNY, having practiced bankruptcy law with Milbank Tweed and done pro bono work for LAMDA, GMHC, and Front Runners from 1982 to 1987. He is the author of SEXUAL ORIENTATION AND HUMAN RIGHTS: THE UNITED STATES CONSTITUTION, THE EUROPEAN CONVENTION, AND THE CANADIAN CHARTER (Oxford University Press, 1997). Professor Wintemute argued the applicant's case in Frett6 v. France, App. No. 36515/97, 2002-I Eur. Ct. H.R. 345 (2002), and has drafted and assisted with amici briefs on international developments. See Lawrence v. Texas, 123 S. Ct. 2472 (2003); Goodridge v. Dep't of Pub. Health, 798 N.E.2d 941 (Mass. 2003); Kamer v. Austria, App. No. 40016/98, Eur. Ct. H.R. (2003), available at http://www.hudoc.echr.coe.int/hudoc. He is currently the United Kingdom expert in the European Group of Experts on Combating Sexual Orientation Discrimination. 1. Kees Waaldijk participated in the same panel entitled Same-Sex Marriages: International Developments. See Kees Waaldijk, Others May Follow: The Introduction of Marriage, Quasi-Marriage, and Semi-Marriage for Same-Sex Couples in European Countries, 38 NEw ENG. L. REV. 569 (2004).

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