Case C-215/15: Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 21 October 2015 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Varhoven kasatsionen sad — Bulgaria) — Vasilka Ivanova Gogova v Ilia Dimitrov Iliev (Reference for a preliminary ruling — Judicial cooperation in civil matters — Jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of decisions in matrimonial matters and matters of parental responsibility — Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 — Scope — Article 1(1)(b) — Attribution, exercise, delegation, restriction or termination of parental responsibility — Article 2 — Concept of parental responsibility — Dispute between parents on travel by their child and the issue of a passport to the child — Prorogation of jurisdiction — Article 12 — Conditions — Acceptance of the jurisdiction of the courts seised — Non-appearance of the defendant — Jurisdiction not contested by the defendant’s legal representative appointed by the courts seised of their own motion)
Date: 2015-10-21
Institutions: Court of Justice
Subjects: child, judicial cooperation in civil matters in the EU, jurisdiction, parental responsibility, passport








C_2015414EN.01001101.xml










14.12.2015   


EN


Official Journal of the European Union


C 414/11





Judgment of the Court (Fourth Chamber) of 21 October 2015 (request for a preliminary ruling from the Varhoven kasatsionen sad — Bulgaria) — Vasilka Ivanova Gogova v Ilia Dimitrov Iliev
(Case C-215/15) (1)

((Reference for a preliminary ruling - Judicial cooperation in civil matters - Jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of decisions in matrimonial matters and matters of parental responsibility - Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 - Scope - Article 1(1)(b) - Attribution, exercise, delegation, restriction or termination of parental responsibility - Article 2 - Concept of parental responsibility - Dispute between parents on travel by their child and the issue of a passport to the child - Prorogation of jurisdiction - Article 12 - Conditions - Acceptance of the jurisdiction of the courts seised - Non-appearance of the defendant - Jurisdiction not contested by the defendant’s legal representative appointed by the courts seised of their own motion))
(2015/C 414/14)
Language of the case: Bulgarian

Referring court

Varhoven kasatsionen sad

Parties to the main proceedings


Applicant: Vasilka Ivanova Gogova

Defendant: Ilia Dimitrov Iliev

Operative part of the judgment







1.


An action in which one parent asks the court to remedy the lack of agreement of the other parent to their child travelling outside his Member State of residence and a passport being issued in the child’s name is within the material scope of Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 of 27 November 2003 concerning jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgments in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility, repealing Regulation (EC) No 1347/2000, even though the decision in that action will have to be taken into account by the authorities of the Member State of which the child is a national in the administrative procedure for the issue of that passport.










2.


Article 12(3)(b) of Regulation No 2201/2003 must be interpreted as meaning that the jurisdiction of the courts seised of an application in matters of parental responsibility may not be regarded as having been ‘accepted expressly or otherwise in an unequivocal manner by all the parties to the proceedings’ within the meaning of that provision solely because the legal representative of the defendant, appointed by those courts of their own motion in view of the impossibility of serving the document instituting proceedings on the defendant, has not pleaded the lack of jurisdiction of those courts.






(1)  OJ C 236, 20.7.2015.