Famous 5 Ottawa hosted a luncheon on October 19, 2012 to honour the recipients of the Governor General’s Persons’ Case Award.
This award was created in 1979 to mark the 50th anniversary of the groundbreaking case, which changed the course of history for women in Canada.
Five winners are chosen each year from across Canada. Recipients exhibit the same courage, integrity and hard work that the Famous Five inspired. The Governor General presents the recipients with their awards at a special ceremony at Rideau Hall in October.
The Famous 5 Ottawa luncheon was sponsored by Enbridge and with the support of Norton Rose.
The Story Behind the Award
In 1929, after two years of legal debate, Canada’s highest court of appeal declared that the word “person” included both women and men. The case had been brought before the courts by five Alberta women who became known as the Famous 5. The case became known as the Persons Case. The Governor General’s Awards in Commemoration of the Persons Case were created to mark this groundbreaking case, which changed the course of history for women in Canada.