A heterosexual couple from Hammersmith have gone to court in a bid to be allowed to have a civil partnership.
Rebecca Steinfield and Charles Keidan want to be able to register their relationship as a civil partnership but have been told this is only available to gay people.
They are challenging the policy at the High Court claiming the government is discriminating against them, and that gay couples have extra rights since the equal marriage bill was introduced.
The couple took action after approaching Kensington and Chelsea Register Office in Chelsea Old Town Hall, with their intention to register a civil partnership. But staff there told them the law only allow same sex couples to form a civil partnership.
Their QC Karon Monaghan said: “They are a couple in a committed relationship and they object to the state of marriage.
“We say to force them to enter into marriage to afford the same rights as other couples is discriminatory and unfair.
“They are committed to equality and say their patriarchal history and societal norms and legal formalities of marriage go against their beliefs.”
She said a government consultation at the opening up of marriage to same sex couples showed 78,556 people agreed that civil partnerships should be opened up to to opposite sex couples, and added: “That is a very significant number indeed we say. This represents the views of a significant amount of the population.”
At an earlier hearing last year the court decided that the dependent in the case is the Secretary of State for Education, Nicky Morgan , because she is also the minister for women and equalities, rather than the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea as it was a matter of law.
The case continues.
