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- Transitional provisions to the revision of the Stock Corporation Act of June 19, 2020
- Art. 808c CO
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- Art. 2 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 3 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 4 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 5 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 6 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 7 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 8 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 9 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 11 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 12 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 25 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 29 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 32 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 33 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
- Art. 34 CCC (Convention on Cybercrime)
FEDERAL CONSTITUTION
CODE OF OBLIGATIONS
FEDERAL LAW ON PRIVATE INTERNATIONAL LAW
LUGANO CONVENTION
CODE OF CRIMINAL PROCEDURE
CIVIL PROCEDURE CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON POLITICAL RIGHTS
CIVIL CODE
FEDERAL ACT ON CARTELS AND OTHER RESTRAINTS OF COMPETITION
FEDERAL ACT ON INTERNATIONAL MUTUAL ASSISTANCE IN CRIMINAL MATTERS
DEBT ENFORCEMENT AND BANKRUPTCY ACT
FEDERAL ACT ON DATA PROTECTION
SWISS CRIMINAL CODE
CYBERCRIME CONVENTION
- I. The child relationship and its formation in general
- II. The child relationship between the child and the mother (para. 1)
- III. The child relationship between the child and the other parent (para. 2)
- IV. The child relationship by adoption (para. 3)
- Materials
- Bibliography
I. The child relationship and its formation in general
A. The child relationship as a legal relationship
1 The child relationship is a legal relationship that is embodied in a family law relationship, namely the parent-child relationship. Legal effects, i.e. rights and duties of the parents or the children, can only be derived from this legally recognised parent-child relationship; in contrast, they cannot be derived from parentage or the spiritual-social relationship. The child relationship as a personal relationship receives an entry in the civil status register (Art. 7 para. 2 lit. a ZStV), which has probative force.
B. Purpose of the child relationship
2 The child relationship is the legal assignment of a child to a mother (maternity) and to another parent. It thus establishes the legal parenthood of the child and at the same time the legal kinship and the legal affinity.
3 Genetic or biological and socio-psychological or intentional parenthood must be distinguished from legal parenthood. Although most legal systems still assume a correspondence between genetic and socio-psychic parenthood, a correspondence between the two forms of parenthood is not mandatory for the legal relationship.
C. Grounds of origin
4 The grounds for the creation of the child relationship standardised in the law are conclusive and in principle mandatory. Accordingly, the legal relationship generally exists both between the child and the mother and between the child and the other parent. However, while the former is absolutely mandatory, there does not necessarily have to be a child relationship between the child and the other parent. While the child's relationship to the mother arises genetically - in concreto by means of birth - the relationship to the other parent requires either a marriage between the mother and the parent, a recognition or a judicial determination. By way of adoption, the child relationship can take place without biological descent.
II. The child relationship between the child and the mother (para. 1)
A. In general
5 Between the woman giving birth as mother and the child, the so-called maternal child relationship is established with the fact of birth. In this respect, the traditional principle mater semper certa est applies. It thus arises ex lege and does not require formal recognition, so that the obligatory notification of maternity to the civil registry office within three days pursuant to Art. 40 CC in conjunction with Art. 34 ff. of the Civil Code is not required. Art. 34 ff. ZStV has a purely declarative effect. A challenge of maternity is not permissible in Switzerland de lege lata, but may be considered for the future.
B. Special constellations
1. Anonymous birth
6 The legal institution of anonymous birth, which allows an expectant mother to give birth to a child anonymously in hospital, is foreign to Swiss law and would contradict the obligation to report births. Thus, only an anonymous child delivery is possible due to the existing possibility of delivering the child in a baby window. In this case, even if the mother is unknown, the maternal child relationship is established. The child that is anonymously handed over in this way is legally treated as a foundling, which is given the surname and first name assigned to it by the authorities (cf. Art. 38 para. 2 ZStV).
2. Confidential birth
7 The purpose of confidential birth is to protect women in emergency situations, for example because they are exposed to violence or threats due to their existing pregnancy. The identity of the woman giving birth and placing her child for adoption is entered in the civil status register, but only a small circle of authorities takes note of the birth. This extensive secrecy is intended to prevent close relatives or third parties from becoming aware of the birth, which would aggravate the existing plight.
3. Stillbirth and miscarriage
8 In the case of a stillbirth or miscarriage, no child relationship can arise due to the lack of a live birth. Stillbirths must be registered in the same way as live births (Art. 9 para. 1 ZStV), a miscarriage can be reported to the civil registry office.
4. Mixed-up child
9 If a child is mixed up in hospital, this has no effect on the creation of the legal relationship: the child relationship is between the mixed-up child and its true, biological mother.
5. Multiple or split motherhood
10 The cases of so-called "multiple or split motherhood" include egg and embryo donation as well as surrogacy. Although they are all prohibited under current Swiss law (see Art. 119 para. 2 lit. d FC and Art. 4 FMedG), they nevertheless find their way into Swiss legal practice through enforcement abroad. Under Swiss law, even in the case of split motherhood, the birth remains decisive for the determination of the mother, so that any contractual agreements deviating from this are invalid and cannot be enforced in court. In contrast, in countries where surrogacy is legally permitted, for example, only the genetic father is registered as the father, while the woman giving birth does not become the mother of the child.
III. The child relationship between the child and the other parent (para. 2)
A. Dualism
11 Child law in Switzerland is characterised by duality. While duality consisted only of motherhood and fatherhood until the opening of marriage for all, today co-motherhood is also possible in addition to motherhood.
12 Under current law, a mother is mandatory, so that paternity and co-paternity are not conceivable.
B. Different-sex parents
13 If the parents are of different sexes, the child's relationship to the father is primarily established by operation of law, or more precisely by legal presumption, on the basis of existing marriage to the mother (cf. Art. 255 CC). If the mother is not married or if the husband's paternity has been successfully contested, the relationship may be established by formal recognition (cf. Art. 260 CC). If the aforementioned cases do not exist, the only remaining option is to establish the child's relationship by means of a judgement, the paternity action (Art. 261, 263 CC).
C. Same-sex parents
14 If the child has same-sex parents, Art. 255a CC provides for the possibility of the child relationship with the co-mother coming into existence by operation of law under certain conditions. Formal recognition or a formative judgment is not provided for in the case of same-sex parents.
IV. The child relationship by adoption (para. 3)
15 In addition to the biological creation of the child relationship, there is the possibility of establishing the legal relationship by a formal legal act - adoption (cf. Art. 264 ff. CC), both for the mother and the other parent. The adoption may involve both parents or only one.
16 The adoption creates a new child relationship, which means that the legal relationship with the genetic parents ends. It is therefore not possible to establish or create a child relationship under Art. 252, paras. 1 and 2 CC.
17 Art. 252 para. 3 CC is merely a reference to Art. 264 ff. CC, so that the provision has no independent significance.
Materials
Bessere Unterstützung für Frauen in Not und verletzliche Familien, Bericht des Bundesrates zum Postulat Maury Pasquier (13.4189) vom 12.10.2016.
Botschaft über die Volksinitiative «zum Schutz des Menschen vor Manipulationen in der Fortpflanzungstechnologie (Initiative für menschenwürdige Fortpflanzung, FMF)» und zu einem Bundesgesetz über die medizinisch unterstützte Fortpflanzung (Fortpflanzungsmedizingesetz, FMedG) vom 26.6.1996 (zit. Botschaft FMedG).
Bibliography
Aebi-Müller Regina E., Anonyme Geburt und Babyfenster – Gedanken zu einer aktuellen Debatte, FamPra.ch 2007, S. 544 ff.
Biderbost Yvo, Findelkinder – Gedanken zum Thema aus juristischer Sicht, ZVW 1999, S. 49 ff.
Büchler Andrea, Sag mir, wer die Eltern sind … Konzeptionen rechtlicher Elternschaft im Spannungsfeld genetischer Gewissheit und sozialer Geborgenheit, AJP 2004, S. 1175 ff.
Büchler Andrea/Maranta Luca, Leihmutterschaft im internationalen Verhältnis: Der aktuelle Stand in der Schweiz, FamPra.ch 2015, S. 354 ff.
Guillod Olivier, Kommentierung zu Art. 252 ZGB, in: Pichonnaz Pascal/Foëx Bénédict (Hrsg.), Commentaire Romand, Code civil I, Basel 2010 (zit. CR-Guillod).
Hausheer Heinz/Aebi-Müller Regina E., Renaissance einer alten Idee: Das Einsiedler Babyfenster aus (zivil-)rechtlicher Sicht, recht 2002, S. 1 ff.
Hausheer Heinz/Geiser Thomas/Aebi-Müller Regina E., Das Familienrecht des Schweizerischen Zivilgesetzbuches, 7. Aufl., Bern 2022.
Reich Johannes, Kommentierung zu Art. 252 ZGB, in: Breitschmid Peter/Jungo Alexandra (Hrsg.), Handkommentar zum Schweizer Privatrecht, Personen- und Familienrecht, Partnerschaftsgesetz, 3. Aufl., Zürich 2016 (zit. CHK-Reich).
Rusch Martina/Götschi Antje, Vorbemerkung zu Art. 252–269c ZGB und Kommentierung zu Art. 252 ZGB, in: Büchler Andrea/Jakob Dominique (Hrsg.), Kurzkommentar, Schweizerisches Zivilgesetzbuch, 2. Aufl., Basel 2017 (zit. KUKO-Rusch/Götschi).
Schwenzer Ingeborg/Cottier Michelle, Kommentierung zu Art. 252 ZGB, in: Geiser Thomas/Fountoulakis Christiana (Hrsg.), Basler Kommentar, Zivilgesetzbuch I, 7. Aufl., Basel 2022 (zit. BSK-Schwenzer/Cottier).
Stehli Claudia, Kommentierung zu Art. 252 ZGB, in: Kren Kostkiewicz Jolanta/Wolf Stephan/Amstutz Marc/Fankhauser Roland (Hrsg.), Orell Füssli Kommentar, Schweizerisches Zivilgesetzbuch, 4. Aufl., Zürich 2021 (zit. OFK-Stehli).
Tuor Peter/Schnyder Bernhard/Schmid Jörg/Jungo Alexandra, Das Schweizerische Zivilgesetzbuch, 14. Aufl., Zürich 2015.
Wolf Stephan/Minnig Yannick, Familienrecht, Basel 2021.