Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands Same-sex marriage in the Netherlands In the Netherlands, same-sex marriage ( or commonly "homohuwelijk") has been legal since 1 April 2001. The Netherlands was the first country in the world to legalize same-sex marriage. Unregistered partnerships or informal cohabitation is when same-sex or opposite-sex couples live together as a couple but they choose to keep the legal status of their relationship unregistered or informal. This means all worldwide assets that belong to a single party remain the sole property of the party with no legal entitlement by the other party, whether owned before or acquired during the relationship. This legal
Same-sex marriage in the Northwest Territories law so it could include same-sex couples. The couple who challenged the Northwest Territory law were awarded $5,000 in legal fees to cover court costs, a judge ruled. On October 17, 2005, Supreme Court Justice Virginia Schuler ordered the Federal Government, and therefore Canadian taxpayers, to reimburse the plaintiffs for costs they incurred during their legal challenge. In June 2002, the Legislative Assembly of the Northwest Territories approved amendments to the "Adoption Act" by allowing same-sex couples to adopt children jointly, and the "Family Law Act" by changing the definition of spouse to allow same-sex couples limited legal rights. Further