Today the European Court of Human Rights delivered its judgement in a case of P.B. and J.S. v. Austria. The Court said Austria violated the European Convention on Human Rights by excluding same-sex partners from insurance cover and once again affirmed same-sex partnership constitute ‘family life’ under the Convention.

 

The Court decided by five votes to two that Austria violated Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) in conjunction with Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) during the period until August 2006 when insurance cover in question was extended only to cohabiting opposite sex partners.