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Full article from 151st:
"A couple who had their marriage solemnised at the Registry of Marriages (ROM) are taking the Registrar to court for deleting the marriage entry from official records after the man had surgery done to become a woman.
They are seeking a High Court judicial review of the Registrar's decision to void their marriage under the Women's Charter and a court order to restore their marriage entry on the State Marriage Registry. At issue is whether their marriage remains valid as a matter of law and if the Registrar exceeded her powers in deleting the marriage entry.
The couple, represented by pro bono lawyers Jeanette Chong-Aruldoss and Suang Wijaya from Eugene Thuraisingam LLP, cleared the first hurdle in January this year with Justice Valerie Thean giving the couple leave to apply for an order to quash the Registrar's decision.
The next step is a full judicial review hearing to consider the case and decide on the order.
Ms Faith Volta was still a man when she and fellow Singaporean, Ms Bryce Volta applied to register their marriage at ROM in September 2015. At a meeting with the couple, the Registrar voiced concerns about their ability to register the intended marriage given the man's appearance and name. She was known as Mr Faith.
The man declared he would not be marrying someone of the same sex and would not undergo any sex reassignment surgery (SRS) to become a woman before the marriage date, according to court documents filed. On Oct 5, 2015, the couple's marriage was solemnised and registered before an ROM official.
In March 2016, Ms Faith decided to have the surgical procedure and by June 2016, the switch was complete. In August 2016, the Immigration and Checkpoints Authority issued her a new identity card stating her gender as female.
Some six months later, the Registrar met the couple to get an explanation of the circumstances behind the sex change and told them at a subsequent meeting the marriage would be revoked.
In a follow-up letter in February last year, the Registrar said a careful review of the case showed Ms Faith had already intended to undergo SRS at the time of the marriage solemnisation. The Registrar added that it showed the couple did not intend to live as man and woman during their marriage, which runs counter to the Women's Charter. The Registrar deemed the marriage void and deleted records of the marriage.
The Registrar is represented by Senior State Counsel Hui Choon Kuen and State Counsel Joshua Lai and Gordon Lim. State Counsel argued at the hearing that Ms Faith had failed to reveal when she took preparatory steps for the SRS, among other things. They said international norms require a patient to live for at least 12 months as a member of the opposite sex before an SRS is performed.
A High Court pre-trial conference is due this week."
