Vancouver sex workers have been cleared to challenge Canada’s prostitution laws.
The Supreme Court of Canada has dismissed an appeal brought by the federal government that tried to stop the sex workers from disputing the laws.
Those laws include a ban on keeping a bawdy house, procurement, and communicating for the purposes of prostitution.
The sex workers had sought public interest standing in a case to launch a constitutional challenge against those laws.
The B.C. Court of Appeal granted them that status, and the federal government appealed.
But now, in a unanimous decision, the country’s top court says the group can go ahead.
Sheryl Kiselbach, one of the respondents, says she hopes the ruling will pave the way for change to make sex work safer.
"I’m very happy that now, finally, I can go to court and tell the judges how these laws affected me and how they continue to affect other sex workers."
Lawyer Katrina Pacey with the Pivot Legal Society say they're not sure yet how or when to continue the legal battle.
But they plan to see how a similar case in Ontario plays out.
The decision comes in the wake of a similar case in Ontario, where a court there struck down the ban on brothels last spring.
