Belfast High Court Upholds Equality Law, But Not Harassment Provisions

In Application for Judicial Review by the Christian Institute, et. al., (No. Ireland High Ct, Sept. 11, 2007), Belfast's High Court has rejected a broad challenge to Northern Ireland's Equality Act (Sexual Orientation) Regulations, but did strike down the harassment provisions because of an absence of proper consultation before they were adopted. The court held that claims of interference with the right to manifest religious belief must be made in the context of particular applications of the rules, so that a court can balance justification for them with the interference involved. Finally the court rejected the argument that that the regulations treat evangelical Christians less favorably than others because they are subject to civil liability for expressing their religious beliefs about homosexuality. Reporting on the decision today, the London Telegraph says the decision will have widespread importance because the government has begun consultations on whether to include harassment prohibitions in the proposed Single Equality Bill that would apply to the rest of Britain.