The appellant, born abroad to a Canadian mother and an American father before 1977, applied for Canadian citizenship.
Under the Citizenship Act, children of Canadian fathers were granted citizenship upon application, while children of Canadian mothers were required to undergo a security check and swear an oath.
The appellant's application was rejected due to outstanding criminal charges discovered during the security check.
The Supreme Court of Canada held that the differential treatment based on the gender of the Canadian parent violated section 15(1) of the Charter and could not be saved under section 1.
The Court found that applying the Charter to the appellant's application was not an impermissible retrospective application, as it addressed his ongoing status at the time of his application.
