Appeared for the intervenor International Commission of Jurists in the Victorian Court of Appeal in this case concerning competing rights of anti-discrimination and freedom of religion under equal opportunity laws and the Victorian Charter of Human Rights and Responsibilities.
The case involved the refusal of the appellant to provide accommodation services to the respondent, a state-wide youth suicide prevention project targeting same-sex attracted people, on grounds of asserted incompatibility with the doctrines of the religious group.
The case is important in the context of current debate concerning the exemption of religious organisations providing commercial services to the community from commonwealth and state anti-discrimination provisions and is a landmark Australian case in terms of its consideration of competing human rights.
See case note