Activities of Alessandra BASSO related to 2022/0402(CNS)
Plenary speeches (1)
Jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition of decisions and acceptance of authentic instruments in matters of parenthood and creation of a European Certificate of Parenthood (debate)
Shadow reports (1)
REPORT on the proposal for a Council regulation on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition of decisions and acceptance of authentic instruments in the matters of parenthood and on the creation of a European Certificate of Parenthood
Amendments (65)
Amendment 67 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 8
Recital 8
(8) While the Union has competence to adopt measures on family law with cross- border implications such as rules on international jurisdiction, applicable law and the recognition of parenthood between Member States, to date the Union has not adopted provisions in those areas as regards parenthood. The Member States’ provisions currently applicable in these areas differ. , and, although the Regulation does not directly affect substantive national law, it nevertheless has a considerable bearing thereon. In order to uphold the different legal and constitutional traditions of the Member States and the public policy limits thereof, states which, upon entry into force of this Regulation, already have legislation in place to ensure full respect for children’s rights and the recognition of parenthood status in specific cases of children born abroad, by virtue of instruments other than the recognition of court decisions and authentic instruments with binding legal effect originating in other Member States, must remain free to disregard the rules on recognition. To that end, the competent authority of the Member State should submit, within six months of entry into force of this Regulation, a communication to the Commission setting out how its national legislation ensures that the principles of non-discrimination and the protection of the best interests of the child are upheld.
Amendment 78 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 12
Recital 12
Amendment 81 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 14
Recital 14
Amendment 94 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 20
Recital 20
(20) Pursuant to Article 2 of the Treaty on European Union (‘TEU’), equality and non-discrimination are amongst the values on which the Union is founded and which are common to the Member States. Article 21 of the Charter prohibits discrimination on grounds of, amongst others, birth. Article 3 TEU and Article 24 of the Charter provide for the protection of the rights of the child, and Article 7 of the Charter provides for everyone’s right to respect for their private and family life. Article 3 of the Charter, however, affirms the right to the integrity of the person and prohibits making the human body and its parts as such a source of financial gain.
Amendment 96 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 21
Recital 21
(21) In conformity with the provisions of international conventions and Union law, this Regulation should ensure that children enjoy their rights and maintain their legal status in cross-border situations without discrimination. To that effect, and in the light of the case law of the Court of Justice, including on mutual trust between Member States, and of the European Court on Human Rights, this Regulation should cover the recognition in a Member State of the parenthood established in another Member State irrespective of how the child was conceived or born and irrespective of the child’s type of family, and including domestic adoption. Therefore, subject to the application of the rules on applicable law of this Regulation, this Regulation should cover the recognition in a Member State of the parenthood established in another Member State of a child with same-sex parents. This Regulation should also cover the recognition in a Member State of the parenthood of a child adopted domestically in another Member State under the rules governing domestic adoption in that Member State, without prejudice to the public policy restrictions of the Member States.
Amendment 101 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 22
Recital 22
(22) To achieve its aims, it is necessary and appropriate for this Regulation to bring together common rules on jurisdiction, applicable law, recognition or, as the case may be, acceptance of court decisions and authentic instruments on parenthood as well as rules on the creation of a European Certificate of Parenthood in a Union legal instrument which is binding and directly applicable.
Amendment 108 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24
Recital 24
(24) For the purposes of this Regulation, parenthood, also referred to as filiation, may be biologic, genetic, by adoption or by operation of law. AlsoSubject to the limits on public order imposed by national laws, for the purposes of this Regulation, parenthood should mean the parent-child relationship established in law, and should cover the legal status of being the child of a particular parent or parents. This Regulation should cover the parenthood established in a Member State of both minors and adults, including a deceased child and a child not yet born, whether to a single parent, a de facto couple, a married couple or a couple in a relationship which, under the law applicable to such relationship, has comparable effects, such as a registered partnership. This Regulation should apply regardless of the nationality of the child whose parenthood is to be established, and regardless of the nationality of the parents of the child. The term ‘parent’ in this Regulation should be understood, as applicable, as referring to the legal parent, the intended parent, the person who claims to be a parent or the person in respect of whom the child claims parenthood.
Amendment 111 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 24 a (new)
Recital 24 a (new)
(24a) Parent-child relationships that arise after conception and gestation are carried out on another’s behalf should not be covered by the scope of this Regulation. Gestation on another’s behalf should be understood as a form of assisted procreation whereby a woman enters into a contractual obligation to carry a pregnancy to term on behalf of third parties, intended parents or clients, either free of charge or for a fee. Whether remunerated or not, gestation on another’s behalf, or ‘surrogacy’, should be prohibited in all Member States, as it violates the dignity of the woman and the unborn child, in contravention of Article 3 of the Charter, in particular the prohibition on making the human body and its parts as such a source of financial gain.
Amendment 114 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 25
Recital 25
(25) This Regulation should not apply to the establishment of parenthood in a Member State in a domestic situation with no cross-border elements. This Regulation should not therefore include provisions on jurisdiction or applicable law for the establishment of parenthood in domestic cases, such as the parenthood of a child further to a domestic adoption in a Member State. However, in order to safeguard children’s rights without discrimination in cross-border situations as laid down in the Charter, in application of the principle of mutual trust between Member States as confirmed by the Court of Justice, the provisions of this Regulation on the recognition or, as the case may be, acceptance of court decisions and authentic instruments on parenthood should also apply to the recognition of parenthood established in a Member State in domestic situations, such as the parenthood established in a Member State further to a domestic adoption in that Member State. The provisions of this Regulation concerning the relevant attestation and the European Certificate of Parenthood should therefore also apply as regards the parenthood established in a Member State in domestic situations, such as further to a domestic adoption in a Member State.
Amendment 117 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 26
Recital 26
Amendment 126 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 31
Recital 31
(31) The requirements for the recording of parenthood in a register should be excluded from the scope of this Regulation. It should therefore be the law of the Member State in which the register is kept that should determine under what legal conditions and how the recording must be carried out, and which authorities are in charge of checking that all requirements are met and that the documentation presented or established is sufficient or contains the necessary information. In order to avoid duplication of documents, the national registration authorities should accept the documents drawn up in another Member State by the competent authorities whose circulation is provided for by this Regulation. In particular, the European Certificate of Parenthood issued under this Regulation should constitute a valid document for the recording of parenthood in a register of a Member State. As the procedure for the issuance of the European Certificate of Parenthood and its contents and effects should be uniform in all Member States as set out in this Regulation, and the European Certificate of Parenthood should be issued in conformity with the rules on jurisdiction and applicable law laid down in this Regulation, the authorities involved in the registration should not require that the European Certificate of Parenthood be first transposed into a national document on parenthood. This should not preclude the authorities involved in the registration from confirming the conditions necessary to establish the authenticity of the European Certificate of Parenthood or from asking the person applying for registration to provide such additional information as required under the law of the Member State in which the register is kept, provided that information is not already included in the European Certificate of Parenthood. The competent authority may indicate to the person applying for registration how the missing information can be provided. The effects of recording the parenthood in a register (for example, depending on the national law, whether registration establishes parenthood or only provides evidence of the parenthood already established) should also be excluded from the scope of this Regulation and be determined by the law of the Member State in which the register is kept.
Amendment 154 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 45
Recital 45
(45) In the interests of procedural economy and procedural efficiency, if the outcome of proceedings before a court of a Member State not having jurisdiction under this Regulation depends on the determination of an incidental question falling within the scope of this Regulation, the courts of that Member State should not be prevented by this Regulation from determining that question. Therefore, if the object of the proceedings is, for instance, a succession dispute in which the parent- child relationship between the deceased and the child must be established for the purposes of those proceedings, the Member State having jurisdiction for the succession dispute should be allowed to determine that question for the pending proceedings, regardless of whether it has jurisdiction for parenthood matters under this Regulation. Any such determination should be made in accordance with the applicable law designated by this Regulation, and should only produce effects in the proceedings for which it was made and constitute evidence in related pending proceedings.
Amendment 171 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 53
Recital 53
Amendment 204 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 68
Recital 68
(68) In order to take into account the different systems of dealing with parenthood in the Member States, this Regulation should guarantee the acceptance in all Member States of authentic instruments which have no binding legal effect in the Member State of origin but which have evidentiary effects in that Member State. Such authentic instruments can have evidentiary effects as regards parenthood already established or as regards other facts. Depending on the national law, authentic instruments providing evidence of parenthood already established can be, for example, a birth certificate, a parenthood certificate or an extract from the civil register on birth. Authentic instruments providing evidence of other facts can be, for example, a notarial or administrative document recording an acknowledgment of paternity, a notarial or administrative document recording the consent of a mother or of a child to the establishment of parenthood, a notarial or administrative document recording the consent of a spouse to the use of assisted reproductive technology, without prejudice to the exclusion from the scope of this Regulation of gestation on another’s behalf, or a notarial or administrative document recording a possession of state.
Amendment 206 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 69
Recital 69
(69) Authentic instruments which have no binding legal effect in the Member State of origin but which have evidentiary effects in that Member State should have the same evidentiary effects in another Member State as they have in the Member State of origin, or the most comparable effects. When determining the evidentiary effects of such an authentic instrument in another Member State or the most comparable effects, reference should be made to the nature and the scope of the evidentiary effects of the authentic instrument in the Member State of origin. The evidentiary effects which such an authentic instrument should have in another Member State will therefore depend on the law of the Member State of origin.
Amendment 222 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 75
Recital 75
(75) Considerations of public interest should allow Member State courts or other competent authorities to refuse, in exceptional circumstances, to recognise or, as the case may be, accept a court decision or authentic instrument on the parenthood established in another Member State where, in a given case, such recognition or acceptance would be manifestly incompatible with the public policy (ordre public) of the Member State concerned. However, the courts or other competent authorities should not be able to refuse to recognise or, as the case may be, accept a court decision or an authentic instrument issued in another Member State when doing so would be contrary to the Charter and, in particular, Article 21 thereof, which prohibits discrimination, and Article 3 thereof on the right to the integrity of the person, which prohibits making the human body and its parts as such a source of financial gain.
Amendment 226 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 76
Recital 76
Amendment 230 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 77
Recital 77
Amendment 232 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 78
Recital 78
Amendment 237 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 79
Recital 79
Amendment 238 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 80
Recital 80
Amendment 243 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 81
Recital 81
Amendment 248 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 83
Recital 83
(83) The European electronic access point should allow natural persons or their legal representatives to launch a request for a European Certificate of Parenthood and to receive and send that Certificate electronically. It should also allow them to communicate electronically with Member State courts or other competent authorities in proceedings for a decision that there are no grounds for the refusal of recognition of a court decision or an authentic instrument on parenthood, or proceedings for the refusal of recognition of a court decision or an authentic instrument on parenthood. Member State courts or other competent authorities should communicate with citizens through the European electronic access point only where the citizen has given prior express consent to the use of this means of communication.
Amendment 255 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 86
Recital 86
(86) In order to ensure that the attestations provided for in Chapters IV and V and the European Certificate of Parenthood provided for in Chapter VI of this Regulation are kept up to date, the power to adopt acts in accordance with Article 290 TFEU should be delegated to the Commission to amend Annexes I to V to this Regulation. It is of particular importance that the Commission carry out appropriate consultations during its preparatory work, including at expert level, and that those consultations be conducted in accordance with the principles laid down in the Interinstitutional Agreement of 13 April 2016 on Better Law-Making60. In particular, to ensure equal participation in the preparation of delegated acts, the Council receives all documents at the same time as Member States’ experts, and their experts systematically have access to meetings of Commission expert groups dealing with the preparation of delegated acts. _________________ 60 Interinstitutional Agreement between the European Parliament, the Council of the European Union and the European Commission on Better Law-Making (OJ L 123, 12.5.2016, p. 1).
Amendment 256 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 87
Recital 87
(87) Respect for international commitments entered into by the Member States means that this Regulation should not affect the application of international conventions to which one or more Member States are party at the time when this Regulation is adopted. To make the rules more accessible, the Commission should publish the list of the relevant conventions in the European e-Justice Portal on the basis of the information supplied by the Member States. Consistency with the general objectives of this Regulation requires, however, that this Regulation take precedence, as between Member States, over conventions concluded exclusively between two or more Member States in so far as such conventions concern matters governed by this Regulation.
Amendment 260 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 90
Recital 90
(90) This Regulation respects the fundamental rights and observes the principles recognised in the Charter. In particular, this Regulation seeks to promote the application of Article 7 on everyone’s right to respect for their private and family life, Article 21 prohibiting discrimination, Article 3 on the right to the integrity of the person, and Article 24 on the protection of the rights of the child.
Amendment 261 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 92
Recital 92
(92) In applying this Regulation, Member State courts or other competent authorities may need to process personal data for the purposes of the establishment of parenthood in cross-border situations and of the recognition of parenthood between Member States. This entails the processing of personal data for the establishment of parenthood in a cross- border situation, the issuance of the attestations accompanying court decisions or authentic instruments, the issuance of a European Certificate of Parenthood, the presentation of documents for the recognition of parenthood, the obtaining of a decision that there are no grounds for refusal of recognition of parenthood, or the application for refusal of recognition of parenthood. Personal data processed by Member State courts or other competent authorities pursuant to this Regulation are contained in the documents handled by Member State courts or other competent authorities for the above purposes. Personal data processed will in particular concern children, their parents and their legal representatives. The personal data handled by Member State courts or other competent authorities should be processed in accordance with applicable data protection legislation, in particular the GDPR. In addition, in applying this Regulation, the Commission may need to process personal data in connection with the electronic communication between natural persons or their legal representatives and Member State courts or other competent authorities to request, receive and send a European Certificate of Parenthood, or in proceedings concerning the recognition or the refusal of recognition of parenthood, through the European electronic access point in the context of the decentralised IT system. The personal data handled by the Commission should be processed in accordance with the EUDPR.
Amendment 266 #
Proposal for a regulation
Recital 95
Recital 95
(95) For the purposes of the establishment of parenthood in a cross- border situation, the issuance of the attestations accompanying court decisions or authentic instruments, the issuance of a European Certificate of Parenthood, the presentation of documents for the recognition of parenthood, the obtaining of a decision that there are no grounds for refusal of recognition of parenthood, or the application for refusal of recognition of parenthood, Member State courts or other competent authorities empowered by the Member States to apply this Regulation should be regarded as controllers within the meaning of Article 4, point 7 of the GDPR. For the purposes of the technical management, development, maintenance, security and support of the European electronic access point, and of the communication between natural persons or their legal representatives and Member State courts or other competent authorities through the European electronic access point and the decentralised IT system, the Commission should be regarded as controller within the meaning of Article 3, point 8 of the EUDPR. Controllers should ensure the security, integrity, authenticity and confidentiality of the data processed for the above purposes.
Amendment 270 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 1 – paragraph 1
Article 1 – paragraph 1
This Regulation lays down common rules on jurisdiction and applicable law for the establishment of parenthood in a Member State in cross-border situations; and common rules for the recognition or, as the case may be, acceptance in a Member State of court decisions on parenthood given, and authentic instruments on parenthood drawn up or registered, in another Member State; and creates a European Certificate of Parenthood.
Amendment 283 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e a (new)
Article 3 – paragraph 2 – point e a (new)
(ea) parent-child relationships in which the child was conceived through a surrogate pregnancy, as defined in point 1 a of paragraph 1 of Article 4. Exclusion from the scope of this regulation shall apply in the same manner for cases in which a surrogate pregnancy has been carried out in a Member State or in a third country and then established and recognised in a Member State.
Amendment 291 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point 1 a (new)
Article 4 – paragraph 1 – point 1 a (new)
1a. 'Surrogate pregnancy' means a form of assisted reproduction in which a woman is contractually obliged to proceed with a pregnancy on behalf of third parties, intending or commissioning parents, either free of charge or for a consideration.
Amendment 319 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 10 – paragraph 2
Article 10 – paragraph 2
2. The non-definitive determination of an incidental question pursuant to paragraph 1 shall produce effects only in the proceedings for which that determination was made and may be used as evidence in pending related actions.
Amendment 324 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 16
Article 16
Amendment 336 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 19 – paragraph 1
Article 19 – paragraph 1
Where parenthood has been definitively established in a Member State pursuant to this Regulation, a subsequent change of the applicable law shall not affect the parenthood already established.
Amendment 349 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 22 – paragraph 2
Article 22 – paragraph 2
2. Paragraph 1 shall be applied by the courts and other competent authorities of the Member States in observance of the fundamental rights and principles laid down in the Charter, in particular Article 21 thereof on the right to non- discrimination and Article 3 on the right to the integrity of the person.
Amendment 354 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 24 – paragraph 1
Article 24 – paragraph 1
1. AWithin the limits provided for in paragraph 1 of Article 31 and cases where Article 41 a applies, a court decision on parenthood given in a Member State shall be recognised in all other Member States without any special procedure being required.
Amendment 366 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 27 – paragraph 1
Article 27 – paragraph 1
1. If the documents specified in Article 26(1) are not produced, the court or other competent authority before which a court decision given in another Member State is invoked may specify a time for its production, accept equivalent documents or, if it considers that it has sufficient information before it, dispense with its production.
Amendment 372 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 29 – paragraph 4
Article 29 – paragraph 4
4. No challenge shall lie against the issuance ofThe law of the Member State of origin shall apply to the procedure for contesting the attestation.
Amendment 387 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 31 – paragraph 2
Article 31 – paragraph 2
2. Point (a) of paragraph 1 shall be applied by the courts and other competent authorities of the Member States in observance of the fundamental rights and principles laid down in the Charter, in particular Article 21 thereof on the right to non-discrimination and Article 3 on the right to the integrity of the person.
Amendment 399 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 32 – paragraph 7 – point b
Article 32 – paragraph 7 – point b
Amendment 410 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 36 – paragraph 1
Article 36 – paragraph 1
Amendment 432 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 39 – paragraph 2
Article 39 – paragraph 2
2. Point (a) of paragraph 1 shall be applied by the courts and other competent authorities of the Member States in observance of the fundamental rights and principles laid down in the Charter, in particular Article 21 thereof on the right to non-discrimination and Article 3 on the right to the integrity of the person.
Amendment 438 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 40
Article 40
Amendment 442 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 41
Article 41
Amendment 446 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 41 a (new)
Article 41 a (new)
Article 41 a Disapplication Member States that, on the date of entry into force of this regulation, have established suitable legislation to ensure that children's rights are fully upheld and that the parent-child relationship of children born abroad is recognised by means of instruments other than that recognising judicial decisions or binding public decisions made in other Member States may disapply the recognition rules laid down in this chapter. To that end, the Member State's competent public authority shall issue a communication to the Commission within six months of the regulation's entry into force explaining how the relevant national legislation ensures that the principles of non-discrimination and of the best interests of the child.
Amendment 453 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 45 – paragraph 1
Article 45 – paragraph 1
1. An authentic instrument which has no binding legal effect in the Member State of origin shall have the same evidentiary effects in another Member State as it has in the Member State of origin, or the most comparable effects, provided that this is not manifestly contrary to public policy (ordre public) in the Member State where it is presented.
Amendment 457 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 45 – paragraph 2
Article 45 – paragraph 2
2. The public policy (ordre public) referred to in paragraph 1 shall be applied by the courts and other competent authorities of the Member States in observance of the fundamental rights and principles laid down in the Charter, in particular Article 21 thereof on the right to non-discrimination and Article 3 on the right to the integrity of the person.
Amendment 462 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 46
Article 46
Amendment 467 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 47
Article 47
Amendment 471 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 48
Article 48
Amendment 473 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 49
Article 49
Application for a Certificate 1. The Certificate shall be issued upon application by the child (‘the applicant’) or, where applicable, a legal representative. 2. For the purposes of submitting an application, the applicant may use the form established in Annex IV. 3. The application shall contain the information listed below, to the extent that such information is within the applicant’s knowledge and is necessary in order to enable the issuing authority to certify the elements which the applicant wants certified, and shall be accompanied by all relevant documents either in the original or by way of copies which satisfy the conditions necessary to establish their authenticity, without prejudice to Article 50(2): (a) details concerning the applicant: surname(s) (if applicable, surname(s) at birth), given name(s), sex, date and place of birth, nationality (if known), identification number (if applicable), address; (b) if applicable, details concerning the legal representative of the applicant: surname(s) (if applicable, surname(s) at birth), given name(s), address and representative capacity; (c) details concerning each parent: surname(s) (if applicable, surname(s) at birth), given name(s), date and place of birth, nationality, identification number (if applicable), address; (d) the place and Member State where the parenthood of the child is registered; (e) the elements on which the applicant founds parenthood, appending the original or a copy of the document(s) establishing parenthood with binding legal effect or providing evidence of the parenthood; (f) the contact details of the Member State’s court that established parenthood, of the competent authority that issued an authentic instrument establishing parenthood with binding legal effect, or of the competent authority that issued an authentic instrument with no binding legal effect in the Member State of origin but with evidentiary effects in that Member State; (g) a declaration stating that, to the applicant’s best knowledge, no dispute is pending relating to the elements to be certified; (h) any other information which the applicant deems useful for the purposes of the issuance of the Certificate.rticle 49 deleted
Amendment 484 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 50
Article 50
Amendment 489 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 51
Article 51
Amendment 496 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 52
Article 52
Amendment 504 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 53
Article 53
Amendment 513 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 54
Article 54
Amendment 515 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 55
Article 55
Amendment 523 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 56
Article 56
Amendment 529 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 57
Article 57
Amendment 537 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 58 – paragraph 1 – point b
Article 58 – paragraph 1 – point b
Amendment 549 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 66 – paragraph 2
Article 66 – paragraph 2
Amendment 551 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 68 – paragraph 1
Article 68 – paragraph 1
1. The personal data required for the application of this Regulation shall be processed by Member State courts or other competent authorities for the purposes of the establishment of parenthood in cross- border situations and of the recognition of parenthood, in connection with the establishment of parenthood pursuant to Chapter II, the issuance of attestations pursuant to Articles 29, 37 and 45, the issuance of a European Certificate of Parenthood pursuant to Article 51, the presentation of the documents for the recognition of parenthood pursuant to Article 26, the obtaining of a decision that there are no grounds for refusal of recognition of parenthood pursuant to Article 25, or the application for refusal of recognition of parenthood pursuant to Article 32.
Amendment 568 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 70 – paragraph 2 – point d
Article 70 – paragraph 2 – point d
Amendment 573 #
Proposal for a regulation
Article 71 – paragraph 1 – point d
Article 71 – paragraph 1 – point d
Amendment 603 #
Proposal for a regulation
Annex IV
Annex IV