Information Note on the Court’s case-law 17

April 2000

Cornwell v. the United Kingdom - 36578/97

Judgment 25.4.2000 [Section III]

Article 14

Discrimination

Allowance available only to widows: friendly settlement

[This summary also covers the judgment of the case Leary v. the United Kingdom , no. 38890/97, 25 April 2000.]

The applicants are widowers who were refused widows' benefits on the ground that such bene fits were available only to widows and not to widowers.

The Government have reached a friendly settlement with each of the applicants whereby they will pay to the applicants, respectively, £11,904.60 and £12,226.20, being the sums to which they would have been entitled for the relevant period if they had been widows. Furthermore, the applicants will receive, on an extra-statutory basis, the amounts they would have received if they had been widows, until the entry into force of new legislation which will gra nt equal treatment to widowers.

© Council of Europe/European Court of Human Rights This summary by the Registry does not bind the Court.

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