Page:Du Toit v Minister of Welfare.djvu/6

Rh Furthermore, section 20(1) of the Child Care Act provides that: “An order of adoption shall terminate all the rights and obligations existing between the child and any person who was his parent (other than a spouse contemplated in section 17(c)) immediately prior to such adoption, and that parent’s relatives.”

Section 17 of the Child Care Act lists the categories of persons entitled to adopt children. Section 17(a) specifically allows for the joint adoption of children by married couples. It does not provide for the joint adoption of children by partners in a permanent same-sex life partnership. The reference to “husband” and “wife” in section 17(a) refers only to marriages ordinarily recognised by the common law and legislation between heterosexual spouses. Rh