Dr. Katherine Zappone and Dr. Ann Louise Gilligan are both women and Irish citizens. They live in Ireland . Dr. Zappone is a public policy research consultant and member of the Human Rights Commission. Dr. Gilligan is an academic and works as a lecturer at St. Patrick's College, Dublin. They have lived together as a de facto couple for 23 years, and are both salaried income earners and joint owners of a family home and one other property in Ireland.

In April, 2001 Katherine and Ann Louise decided to seek legal recognition of their life partnership. As at present, no such legal recognition existed in the country and there was little public debate about partnership rights for same-sex couples. With extensive research and legal advice they were considering taking a constitutional challenge against the Irish State.

Another route opened up when a British Columbia High Court opened the Canadian institution of marriage to same sex couples in June of 2003. On 13 th September of that year they married in a civil ceremony in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada. Their marriage is legally valid for all purposes in Canada.

Next Page >>

Background to the KAL Case