Bill 41 explained in plain English
Marriage Amendment Act, 2018
Ontario legislature bill summary, status, timeline, sponsor, votes, and official sources.
At a glance
Official Legislative Assembly of Ontario snapshot for 41st Parliament, 3rd Session. Representative vote breakdowns appear when the Assembly publishes an Ayes and Nays page for the bill.
Our plain-language take, written for civic education.
Source: By PoliticalData.ca
This bill allows any person to lodge a formal objection, called a caveat, against the issuance of a marriage licence, with provisions for resolution and appeal.
This bill, the Marriage Amendment Act, 2018, changes the Marriage Act in Ontario. It allows any person to formally object to a marriage by lodging a 'caveat' with an issuer of marriage licences. To lodge a caveat, a fee must be paid, and specific information must be provided, including the reason for the objection. The issuer of marriage licences cannot issue a licence to the person named in the caveat until the objection is resolved, either by the issuer being satisfied it shouldn't stop the marriage, or by the caveat being withdrawn. If the issuer decides against the objection, they must notify the person who lodged the caveat. This decision can be appealed to the Registrar General. The Registrar General will then make a final decision on whether to allow the marriage licence to be issued. The bill also allows the Registrar General to be consulted for advice in cases of doubt. The changes took effect on the day the bill received Royal Assent.
- Allows any person to lodge a 'caveat' with an issuer of marriage licences to object to a marriage.
- Requires a fee to be paid and specific information to be provided when lodging a caveat.
- Prevents the issuance of a marriage licence to a person named in a caveat until the objection is resolved.
- Outlines a process for the issuer of marriage licences to inquire into the caveat and make a decision.
- Allows for an appeal of the issuer's decision to the Registrar General.
- Grants the Registrar General the authority to resolve appeals related to caveats and direct the issuance or refusal of a marriage licence.
- Permits the issuer to refer matters of doubt regarding a caveat to the Registrar General for advice.
- Specifies that the changes to the Marriage Act come into force on the day the bill receives Royal Assent.
- Individuals seeking to obtain a marriage licence in Ontario.
- Individuals who wish to object to a marriage by lodging a caveat.
- Issuers of marriage licences in Ontario.
- The Registrar General of Ontario.
- The right for any person to lodge a caveat against the issuing of a marriage licence upon payment of a prescribed fee.
- The obligation for a caveat to be in the prescribed form, signed, and contain specific information, including contact details and grounds for objection.
- The obligation for marriage licence issuers not to issue a licence if a caveat is lodged, until the matter is resolved or the caveat is withdrawn.
- The obligation for issuers to provide written notice of their decision within 10 business days if they decide against the caveat.
- The right to appeal the issuer's decision to the Registrar General within five business days.
- The obligation for the issuer to not issue a marriage licence until an appeal to the Registrar General is resolved.
- The right for the issuer to refer a caveat matter to the Registrar General for advice.
- The Act came into force on the day it received Royal Assent.
- A prescribed fee is required to lodge a caveat against the issuing of a marriage licence.
- The bill does not specify the amount of the prescribed fee for lodging a caveat.
- The bill does not specify the exact 'other prescribed information' that must be provided in a caveat.
- The bill does not detail the specific grounds that may be considered valid for lodging a caveat.
- The bill does not define what constitutes being 'satisfied that it ought not to obstruct the issuing of the licence' for the issuer.
- The bill does not specify the appeal process details beyond filing a notice and providing a copy to the issuer, nor does it detail how the Registrar General resolves appeals.
- The bill does not explicitly state penalties for any contravention of its provisions.
Adds a new section (7.1) that establishes a process for lodging caveats against the issuance of marriage licences and outlines the subsequent procedures for resolution and appeal.
Source: Section 1
Adds new clauses to section 34, allowing for regulations to prescribe the fee for lodging a caveat and the information required for a caveat.
Source: Section 2
Generated using AI from official bill text. Not legal advice. It is written by PoliticalData.ca for civic education, automatically checked and spot-reviewed before publishing.
Official textProcess Snapshot
Vote Summary
This bill is still active. We only show vote counts after the legislature publishes a recorded division.
No published representative vote breakdown
This bill is still moving through the process. When a recorded division is published, representative positions can be listed here.
Official sources
Status, sponsor, votes, and timeline on this page are drawn from these official legislative sources and public records. Each summary above is attributed to its own source.
How this data is sourced