СІМЕЙНИЙ КОДЕКС УКРАЇНИ: ІСТОРІЯ – КРІЗЬ СЕРЦЕ
Authors: Romovs`ka Zoryslava ,   Львівський національний університет імені Івана Франка
Published: July 2024

In the article, the author shares information about the history of the adoption by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine of the Family Code of Ukraine, the draft of which she was the author, and the difficult atmosphere of its adoption in confrontation with those who firmly held on to the Soviet model of regulation of family relations. The author analyses the main comments to the draft made by the “advocates of yesterday”. These were, first and foremost, their views on the grounds for creating a family. They categorically denied the possibility of a woman and a man creating a family ‘bypassing’ marriage. Article 3 of the Family Code recognises this possibility for the first time. In this way, the Code fulfils the requirement of Article 24 of the Constitution of Ukraine on the inadmissibility of discrimination on any grounds, and also recognises the human right to choose the forms of organisation of one's family life and respect for this choice. The Family Code of Ukraine is a worldview legislative document that, while regulating family relations, also performs the function of education, affirming universal humanitarian values. Three conceptual and ideological lines are drawn throughout the Code, which intertwine and complement each other. First and foremost, it is the affirmation of the ideology of non-violence, one of the manifestations of which is the possibility of contractual regulation of family relations (previously they could be regulated exclusively by law). Next: the civilisation of love. The Family Code has implemented it by endowing participants in family relations with new rights and responsibilities, asserting responsibility for the fate of everyone around you, for the one who gave you love. One of the manifestations of this civilisation is the possibility for a court to make a decision on the recognition of paternity on the basis of biological descent alone. The prohibition of corporal punishment is both a manifestation of a civilisation of love and resistance to violence. This civilisation of love is evidenced in Chapter 6, “Personal Non-Property Rights and Duties of Spouses”. It begins with Article 49 “The Right to Motherhood” and Article 50 “The Right to Fatherhood”. And then there are the articles that gave legal meaning to such concepts as “respect” and “love”. As a result, the sense of duty based on love sounded differently. The third such line is respect for each participant in family relations. The article informs the reader about acts of “aggression” against the Family Code initiated by the Ministry of Justice of Ukraine. For example, regarding engagement, solemn registration of marriage, court restoration of a dissolved marriage, visits of parents with detained children, etc. (We are all in the process of growing). The Family Code of Ukraine is modern, based on fairness and rationality. However, we understand that the good has its enemy – the best, and the best is even better. It is only necessary that the existence of these traits is proved by real experts. Keywords: family law, draft law, ideology of non-violence, right to respect, civilisation of love.