Strasbourg Observers

View posts from: Schalk and Kopf v. Austria

  • Ignatius Yordan Nugraha

Consolidating the Legal Recognition and Protection of Same-Sex Couples: Koilova and Babulkova v. Bulgaria

November 07, 2023

by Ignatius Yordan Nugraha In today’s globalised world, a marriage contracted abroad is not a peculiar phenomenon. Same-sex couples from countries such as Bulgaria or Romania may decide to tie the knot in a country where same-sex marriage has been legalised to start a family life. These couples, however, face a major legal hurdle not […]

  • Dr. Andy Hayward

Maymulakhin and Markiv v. Ukraine – A Case of Love Conquering All?

July 04, 2023

by Dr. Andy Hayward, Durham Law School, Durham University, a.p.hayward@durham.ac.uk Following the important Grand Chamber decision in Fedotova and Others v. Russia, the Strasbourg Court has handed down two significant decisions on the legal recognition of same-sex couples. In Buhuceanu and Others v. Romania, the Court developed the principles established in Fedotova and weaponised the […]

  • Giulio Fedele

More protection than recognition for same-sex couples in Buhuceanu and Others v Romania

May 30, 2023

by Giulio Fedele, University of Rome “La Sapienza”, giulio.fedele@uniroma1.it With its latest decision in the case of Buhuceanu and Others v. Romania on 23 May 2023, the European Court of Human Rights returned to the subject of same-sex couples and legal recognition. To no-one’s surprise, the Court confirmed what it had already established just five […]

  • Alexandra Timmer

2010: year of “profound moral views”?

January 20, 2011

2010 was a turbulent year for the European Court of Human Rights. The Court has been under fire both for usurping too much power and for achieving too little. The first type of critique is made by conservatives who recycle the old idea that an international court has no legitimacy to judge the situation on […]

  • Alexandra Timmer

Same-sex marriage case should go to the Grand Chamber: more on Schalk and Kopf v. Austria

July 01, 2010

Gay rights are one of the human rights issues of our time. The Strasbourg Court came out with an important but ultimately disappointing ruling on same-sex marriage last week (for a summary of the case, see Lourdes’ post). It is disappointing both for the reasoning and for the outcome (see below). Despite the fact that […]