The Commission for Gender Equality (CGE) has submitted representations to be friends of the court in what a Cape Times report calls a watershed court case interrogating the rights of same-sex couples after death. Represented by the Legal Resources Centre (LRC), the CGE made representations yesterday in the Constitutional Court as amicus curiae in the application for leave to appeal in the case of Laubscher NO versus Duplan and Another.

This case stems from a court decision in which the partner of a man who had died without having made a will was found to be his lawful heir and therefore awarded his estate. This was despite the fact that the two were not married and had not had a civil union either. However, the deceased man’s brother has challenged that decision.

According to the CGE, Cornelius Laubscher and his partner, Eric Duplan, had been in a relationship for 12 years. Laubscher died last year but did not have a will and his brother elected himself the heir and executor of the estate. However, Duplan took the matter to court on an urgent appeal and was declared the heir. Laubscher’s brother refused to accept the court’s decision that Duplan was the rightful heir and appealed to the Constitutional Court.

Full Cape Times report (subscription needed)