The European Court of Human Rights had been seized by a Spanish, which had separated from his companion during his pregnancy. The child had worn his only name, until a paternity recognition one year later.
Le Monde with AFP
The European Court of Human Rights (ECHR) found “discriminatory”, Tuesday, October 26, the automatic allocation to a child, in the event of a disagreement of the parents, the name of the Father followed by that of the mother Believing that “the impossibility of derogating [was] excessively rigid”. The Court had been seized for discrimination by a Spanish woman who had separated from his companion during his pregnancy.
The judges of the ECHR considered that this rule of allocation of names could “prove necessary in practice and [was] not necessarily in contradiction” with the European Convention on Human Rights. But they have, however, held that “the impossibility of derogating [was] excessively rigid and discriminatory against women”, and that the “difference in treatment” suffered by the complainant was not justified and thus constituted a violation of the Convention.
10 000 euros for “moral damage”
European magistrates have justified their decision by the particular circumstances of the situation: the child of the complainant had not been recognized immediately by his father and therefore brought only the surname of his mother “for more One year “, until paternity recognition. Spain has been sentenced to pay 10,000 euros to the complainant for “moral damage”.
In the meantime, the situation has evolved in the country. Since a law dated 2011, it has been the responsibility of the Civil Status Judge to decide, in the event of disagreement, the order of award of surnames, taking into account as the main criterion “the best interest of the child “. In case of mutual recognition, children born in Spain still inherit the first name of their father followed by the first name of their mother.