A gay Hong Kong civil servant, who mounted a legal challenge after he and his partner were refused spousal benefits, has won his case at the city’s Court of Final Appeal.

Angus Leung and his British husband Scott Adams, who were married in New Zealand in 2014, told reporters outside the Court of Final Appeal that they welcomed the judgment, and that “love wins.”

“We understand this is just a small step for equality in Hong Kong,” Leung said, adding that he urged the government to review its policies and legislation for other forms of discrimination.

Leung first filed the lawsuit in 2015 after Adams was denied spousal medical and dental benefits, and the couple was denied the option of filing a joint tax assessment, rights that heterosexual couples enjoy in Hong Kong.

In April 2017, the Court of First Instance initially ruled in favour of Leung with judge Anderson Chow outlining in official documents: “In all, I am of the view that the Benefits Decision unlawfully discriminates against Mr Leung based on his sexual orientation.” However, in October 2017 this was subsequently overturned by the Secretary for the Civil Service Commissioner of Inland Revenue.

Subsequent appeals by Leung were unsuccessful, but he ultimately pushed the case to the Court of Appeal.

This long process, he said, had been emotionally taxing for his family.

Hong Kong does not recognize same-sex marriage, but past legal challenges that argue that same-sex couples are discriminated against have proved effective. Last year a gay expat couple had their marriage recognized for the purposes of granting spousal visa rights after they took their complaint through the court process.

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