David Corbett is a

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

lawyer who gained international acclaim when, in 2002, he argued ''

Marc Hall v. Durham Catholic School Board ''Hall v Durham Catholic School Board'' was a 2002 court case in which Marc Hall, a Canadian teenager, fought a successful legal battle against the Durham Catholic District School Board to bring a same-sex date to his high school prom. The case m ...

'', a case that pitted the rights of a

homosexual Homosexuality is romantic attraction, sexual attraction, or sexual behavior between members of the same sex or gender. As a sexual orientation, homosexuality is "an enduring pattern of emotional, romantic, and/or sexual attractions" to peop ...

couple against the rights of a religious institution. Prior to the case Mr. Corbett was a well known gay activist in

Ontario Ontario ( ; ) is one of the thirteen provinces and territories of Canada.Ontario is located in the geographic eastern half of Canada, but it has historically and politically been considered to be part of Central Canada. Located in Central Ca ...

arguing numerous cases and publishing many articles for same-sex equality. When the Marc Hall case garnered international attention, Mr. Corbett agreed to take the case

pro bono ( en, 'for the public good'), usually shortened to , is a Latin phrase for professional work undertaken voluntarily and without payment. In the United States, the term typically refers to provision of legal services by legal professionals for pe ...

(free of charge).OUR COURTS ARE MOCKING JUSTICE
REAL Women of Canada. In 2003, Mr. Corbett was appointed to the

Ontario Superior Court The Superior Court of Justice (French: ''Cour supérieure de justice'') is a superior court in Ontario. The Court sits in 52 locations across the province, including 17 Family Court locations, and consists of over 300 federally appointed judges. ...

Education and background

In 1985, Justice David Corbett received a Bachelor of Laws from

Osgoode Hall Law School Osgoode Hall Law School, commonly shortened to Osgoode, is the law school of York University in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The law school is home to the Law Commission of Ontario, the Journal of Law and Social Policy, and the ''Osgoode Hall La ...

. Then joined the Law Society of Upper Canada in 1987. Prior to being appointed Superior Court Justice he was a partner at Eberts Symes Street Corbett & Pinto where he specialized in the area of

civil litigation Civil law is a major branch of the law.Glanville Williams. ''Learning the Law''. Eleventh Edition. Stevens. 1982. p. 2. In common law legal systems such as England and Wales and the law of the United States, United States, the term refers to non ...

. He had previously held positions with the Osgoode Hall Law School, the

University of Toronto The University of Toronto (UToronto or U of T) is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, located on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution ...

, and the

University of Western Ontario The University of Western Ontario (UWO), also known as Western University or Western, is a Public university, public research university in London, Ontario, London, Ontario, Canada. The main campus is located on of land, surrounded by resident ...

. Mr Justice Corbett was also a director of

Foundation for Equal Families The Foundation for Equal Families is a Canadian gay and lesbian rights group founded in 1994 following the failure of Bill 167 in the Legislative Assembly of Ontario. The group's mandate is "Dedicated to achieving recognition and equality for ...

Marc Hall legal case

Marc Hall was a high school student at

Oshawa, Ontario Oshawa ( , also ; 2021 population 175,383; CMA 415,311) is a city in Ontario, Canada, on the Lake Ontario shoreline. It lies in Southern Ontario, approximately east of Downtown Toronto. It is commonly viewed as the eastern anchor of the G ...

's Monsignor John Pereyma Catholic Secondary School who wanted to take his boyfriend to his high school prom in 2002. The case was notable because it pitted the rights of gays and lesbians against the rights of religious institutions. According to BNA Act (1867), S.93

Catholic school Catholic schools are pre-primary, primary and secondary educational institutions administered under the aegis or in association with the Catholic Church. , the Catholic Church operates the world's largest religious, non-governmental school syste ...

s in Ontario were guaranteed special protections to operate according to their religious beliefs free of governmental interference.
BNA (Constitution) Act of 1867. This, the school district argued, protected the school's right to deny Mr. Hall from taking his boyfriend to the school prom, an act the Catholic Church would consider a sin. Mr Corbett argued that the school, which received public funding, was obligated to obey laws outlawing discrimination, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Mr Corbett succeeded in winning an injunction against the school that forced it not only to allow Mr Hall to take his boyfriend but forbade the school from cancelling the event. The injunction did not, however, make any final ruling outside of this particular case in regards to the role of religious freedoms as they relate to the rights of same-sex couples. In 2005, 2 years after David Corbett was appointed Canadian Superior Justice, Mr Hall dropped his pending court case.

The Hall case in film

Director Larry Peloso created a one-hour documentary on the case entitled '' Prom Fight: The Marc Hall Story''. An unrelated television movie, '' Prom Queen: The Marc Hall Story'', aired on CTV in 2004.

Aaron Ashmore Aaron Richard Ashmore (born October 7, 1979) is a Canadian actor. He is known for his roles on American television series such as Jimmy Olsen on ''Smallville'', Steve Jinks on '' Warehouse 13'' and Johnny Jaqobis on the Canadian television series ...

starred as Hall.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Corbett, David Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Judges in Ontario Lawyers in Ontario Canadian LGBT rights activists Academic staff of the University of Toronto Academic staff of the University of Toronto Faculty of Law