The Arbitration Act in Ontario and similar legislation in other provincial jurisdictions, with the exception of Quebec, allowed for religious laws to be applied in settling family disputes. Under the Arbitration Act, a faith-based, privately-arbitrated decision was legally binding. While the right of appeal existed, it was almost impossible to exercise it without incurring tremendous personal and financial hardship.
Read this article by Alia Hogben for the journal Canadian Woman Studies, Volume 25, Numbers 3, 4.
