EU Topic - Family Law

Respecting the family's wishes

The European Union, with notaries as privileged partners, has set itself the aim of creating a real area of justice where decisions taken in one Member State relating to family law would be recognised and enforced in the other Member States. The European notaries, through the CNUE and with their own proposals, intend to play an active role in the elaboration of a European framework to deal with legal issues with a transnational dimension.

As marriages and families made up of people from different Member States multiply, the differences between legal cultures can create competition between the different legal systems within the EU. They are also a source of difficulties for legal practitioners and legal insecurity for the families.

This is why, for subjects as important as divorce, matrimonial property regimes and maintenance obligations, the CNUE is particularly careful to ensure that any legislative initiatives taken in a European framework rule out the risk of 'forum shopping', contribute to the formation of an educated choice and respect the autonomy and wishes of the couple. Any EU legislation must also pay special attention to the weakest party, such as vulnerable people, be directed towards principles of dispute prevention and respect the diversity of the national legal orders. 

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