European court backs transsexual pension rights

By Marc Shoffman • May 23, 2006 - 0:00

The European Court of Human Rights ruled that Linda Grant's “right to respect for private and family life“ was being breached by the British government

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A transsexual has been granted female pension rights by the European Court of Human Rights.

The court ruled that Linda Grant's "right to respect for private and family life" was being breached by the British government by being told she would have to wait until she was 65 for a male pension instead of the female age of 60.

Ms Grant, 68, lived as a man until her mid 20s, despite a sex change her birth certificate still considered her as a male, although her national insurance documents recognised her as a woman.

But when she applied for a pension on her 60th birthday, she was rejected because of her birth certificate

Last year she was given a gender recognition certificate, under the Gender Recognition Act, which recognised her "acquired gender," thus giving her the appropriate social security benefits and pension rights.

The judge said there was no justification for not to recognising her sex change situation particularly after the case of Christine Goodwin, in 2002, who took her case to the European Court of Human Rights, claiming the law denies her proper sexual identity.

Last month the court ruled that Britain is illegally refusing pension rights to transsexuals by only considering their original sex.

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