2010 Schalk and Kopf v. Austria case no relation family
The right to family life is the right of all individuals to have their established family life respected, and to have and maintain family relationships. This right is recognised in a variety of international human rights instruments, including Article 16 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Article 23 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, and Article 8 of the European Convention on Human Rights.Definition
The changing concept of family requires a subjective definition of what family entails. There is no contest that the relationship between husband and wife, unmarried (de facto) partners, parents and children, siblings, and ‘near relatives’ such as between grandparents and grandchildren represents family as required under the right to family life. Challenge exists where modern forms of family relationships have developed that the law has not yet explicitly recognised. The “existence… of family life is a question of fact” and is decided subjectively under each factual scenario. The European Court of Human Rights has stated that when considering what constitutes family relationships the Court “must necessarily take into account developments in society and changes in the perception of social, civil-status and relational issues, including the fact that there is not just one way or one choice in the sphere of leading and living one’s family or private life”. The ECHR first recognized that same-sex relationships fall under the right to family life in the 2010 Schalk and Kopf v. Austria case. Established family ties can be broken.
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