Withers defeated in Scientology wedding challenge
Withers has lost a High Court case over a woman’s right to get married in a Church of Scientology chapel.
Partner Paul Hewitt advised clients Louisa Hodkin and the Church of Scientology RE College in their challenge against the Registrar General of Births, Deaths and Marriages.
The registrar decided not to approve Church of Scientology chapels as ‘places of meeting for religious worship’, which meant that Hodkin could not marry her Scientologist fiancé in one.
Lord Lester QC and Naina Patel of Blackstone Chambers were instructed by Withers for the claimants and James Strachan of 4-5 Gray’s Inn Square was instructed for the defendant by the Treasury Solicitor.
Hodkin’s lawyers had argued that she was being unlawfully discriminated against on the basis of her religion. But Mr Justice Ouseley, sitting in the High Court, dismissed the challenge.
Referring to legal precedent from the Court of Appeal case of Segerdal, which ruled that a Scientology chapel was not a place for religious worship, Ouseley concluded that the 1970 case was “binding”.
But the judge left the door open for further legal action. He added: “Forty years on from Segerdal, the Court of Appeal may find the route at least to reconsider its decision in Segerdal, with the fuller material now available.”
Readers' comments (6)
Anonymous | 20-Dec-2012 10:39 am
An excellent decision. I'm surprised that Withers acted for them. They have certainly gone down in my view, as badly as Farrer's did when they started acting for Murdoch.
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Anonymous | 20-Dec-2012 10:57 am
If it's any consolation to Scientologists, it's not just them. Hindu weddings aren't legal either, and I'm pretty sure Sikh and Islamic ones aren't either. The only legal weddings, I think, are Christian, Jewish and secular - presumably because those were the only religions that were deemed common in the UK back in the day when the law was invented.
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Anonymous | 20-Dec-2012 12:03 pm
What a highly inappropriate accompanying photo.
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Church of the Poison Mind | 20-Dec-2012 1:10 pm
Who are these lunatics?! People will be trying to get approval to marry in 'Jedi chapels' next.
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Anonymous | 20-Dec-2012 8:11 pm
..........and Tesco was planning to roll out a full wedding service - taking vows next to the poultry case
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Anonymous | 24-Dec-2012 8:41 am
I think it is crazy that someone has to go on court to do a wedding. What an old archaic government rules one's right to get married in his church? This is crazy and sad.
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