HIV carriers don’t have to disclose condition to sex partners under 2 conditions, SCOC says
Posted Oct 5, 2012 10:03:34 AM.
This article is more than 5 years old.
Canada’s highest court has ruled HIV carriers don’t legally have to inform sex partners about their condition if they meet two specific conditions. Carriers of the virus are absolved of disclosure as long as they have a low level of the virus and wear a condom.
It updates a landmark 1998 ruling made 14 years ago that people with HIV must inform their sex partners of their condition, or face a charge of aggravated sexual assault.
In the 9-0 ruling, the high court specifies those two key conditions, clarifying the rules on whether it is a crime for people with extremely low levels of HIV to withhold their condition from their sex partners.
The court says today’s clarification reflects medical advances in treating the virus that causes aids and left the door open to adapting to future changes in science in medicine.
The Supreme Court ruled on two separate cases, from Manitoba and Quebec, updating its landmark 1998 ruling on the subject.
