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Poland: the Supreme Court has confirmed the country’s legal obligation to recognise same-sex marriages concluded abroad
The Court said that Poland’s refusal to recognise same-sex marriages concluded abroad is incompatible with EU law. It follows an earlier judgment of the Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) that required Poland to recognise same-sex marriages legally concluded in other EU Member States.
The case, ongoing since 2019, concerns a couple who were repeatedly refused transcription of their marriage certificate by the Civil Registry Office.
The Court has ordered the Civil Registry Office to transcribe the couple’s marriage certificate within 30 days once it receives the case files. This effectively closes the case and marks a significant legal breakthrough.
“Today’s judgment is a victory for the many same-sex couples in Poland who have been deprived of marriage recognition for years and a first step towards equality,” said Marie-Hélène Ludwig, our Senior Strategic Litigation Advisor at ILGA-Europe.
“It also shows that domestic courts can swiftly implement CJEU judgments, contrary to what we have seen in other CJEU cases”.
Together with Polish civil society organisations and legal experts we will be closely monitoring compliance by authorities, as this ruling sets a precedent.
Read more 
http://ilga-europe.org/…/poland-supreme-administrative…/
Yesterday, in the judgment of Shipov, the Court of Justice decided how EU citizenship can shape the recognition of gender identity within the Member States. Yet not through anti-discrimination law, but through the constitutional logic of free movement. The Court of Justice held that EU law precludes national legislation preventing a Union citizen from changing gender-related data in civil-status records in relation to the exercise of free movement. While formally grounded in Article 21 TFEU and Directive 2004/38, the case raises broader constitutional questions about the evolving relationship between citizenship, gender identity, and fundamental rights in the EU. Shipov follows the AG’s “minimal intrusion” logic and reinforces its reasoning by drawing heavily on Strasbourg jurisprudence. Finally, by linking gender identity to the effectiveness of EU citizenship, even under a relatively modest cross-border link, the Court further expands the role of Union citizenship as a vehicle for protecting personal identity and dignity.
The judgement of the Court of Justice in Shipov (C-43/24, 2026), issued on 12 March 2026, marks another step in the gradual constitutionalisation of sexual and gender identity within EU law. The Court held that EU law precludes national legislation preventing the amendment of gender-related data – including name and personal identification number – in civil-status registers of a Union citizen who has exercised free movement. In doing so, the Court treated identity documents not merely as administrative instruments but as essential legal tools enabling the effective exercise of EU citizenship rights. If the information contained in such documents no longer corresponds to a person’s lived identity, the resulting inconsistencies may create concrete obstacles in everyday cross-border interactions, ranging from border checks to employment procedures.
The decision continues a line of cases where the Court linked questions of personal identity to the effectiveness of EU citizenship rights. Earlier judgments such as Garcia Avello (C-148/02, 2003), Grunkin and Paul (C-353/06, 2008), Coman (C-673/16, 2018), and V.M.A. (C-490/20, 2021) similarly treated matters of personal status – names, marriage, or parenthood – as capable of restricting the effective exercise of free movement. Previously, I have commented extensively about the Coman case here on VerfBlog and elsewhere (with Dimitry Kochenov).
At first glance, however, Shipov appears doctrinally unusual. The dispute concerned only Bulgarian civil-status records. Unlike the earlier cases mentioned above, it did not involve the recognition of a legal status already established in another Member State (see para. 40 of the judgment). Yet the case was not entirely internal. The applicant had exercised free movement by residing in Italy, where she underwent hormone therapy and formed a stable relationship with an Italian national. Still, the cross-border element remained comparatively thin. The dispute itself concerned the amendment of Bulgarian civil-status records rather than mutual recognition of a status already created abroad. Furthermore, the domestic legal context was shaped by the Bulgarian Constitutional Court’s interpretative decision of 26 October 2021, which held that the constitutional concept of “sex” must be understood exclusively in a biological sense.
In her earlier VerfBlog analysis of the Advocate General’s Opinion, Alina Tryfonidou highlighted the careful doctrinal strategy underlying the case. Rather than imposing a general obligation on Member States to introduce gender recognition procedures, the Advocate General, Jean Richard de la Tour, adopted a more limited approach. EU law requires identity documents to enable the effective exercise of free movement. If those documents cannot reflect a person’s gender identity without amending civil-status records, Member States must allow such amendments where necessary for the exercise of EU citizenship rights.
This “minimal intrusion” logic is reflected in the judgment itself. The Court reiterates that matters of civil status remain within Member State competence. However, Member States must exercise that competence consistently with EU law when national rules affect the practical conditions under which Union citizens exercise their mobility rights (paras 37–39, 47 of the judgment).
The Court further reinforced its reasoning by drawing heavily on Strasbourg jurisprudence. Referring to Article 8 ECHR and the European Court of Human Rights’ case law on gender identity, it emphasised that States must provide accessible procedures for legal gender recognition. Bulgaria had already been criticised in ECtHR judgments such as Y.T. v Bulgaria (2020) and P.H. v Bulgaria (2022) (paras. 49-52 of the judgement).
This reliance on Strasbourg allows the Court to situate its intervention within a broader European human-rights framework rather than presenting it as a purely EU-law innovation.
Despite this cautious framing, the judgment still raises questions about the limits of EU citizenship. The relatively weak cross-border element inevitably invites comparison with McCarthy (C-434/09, 2011), where the Court rejected the application of EU law to a purely internal situation.
Formally, Shipov is distinguishable because the applicant had exercised free movement by residing in Italy. Yet the case still pushes EU citizenship into terrain where the cross-border element is more contextual than structural. The Court justifies its intervention by emphasising the role of identity documents as instruments of mobility. Discrepancies between a person’s lived gender identity and official documents may create practical obstacles when interacting with authorities, employers, or service providers across Member States.
Nevertheless, the judgment might have benefited from a clearer explanation of why such a comparatively thin cross-border element suffices. Without such clarification, the decision risks appearing difficult to reconcile with the stricter logic of earlier “purely internal situation” cases. The Court’s reasoning may therefore be understood as subtly recalibrating the threshold for the cross-border element required to trigger EU citizenship protections. Rather than demanding a fully developed cross-border legal status, the Court appears willing to intervene where national rules risk undermining the practical usability of identity documents across Member States. Whether this approach represents a pragmatic evolution of citizenship jurisprudence or a more controversial expansion of EU judicial authority will likely remain a subject of debate.
Another striking feature of Shipov is the legal pathway chosen by the Court. The dispute concerns gender identity – an issue that might naturally fall within anti-discrimination law. Yet the Court does not rely on the Framework Equality Directive 2000/78/EC or on the equality provisions of the Treaties. Instead, the judgment relies on Article 21 TFEU (the fundamental right to move and reside freely within the EU), Directive 2004/38/EC (EU Citizens’ Rights Directive), and Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union (respect for private and family life).
This choice is constitutionally significant. Anti-discrimination protection under Article 19 TFEU typically requires legislative harmonisation, whereas free movement provisions operate directly. By framing the case through citizenship and mobility rather than equality law, the Court relies on one of the Union’s strongest constitutional tools.
The broader significance of Shipov becomes clearer when placed within the evolving constitutional narrative of EU citizenship. Over the past two decades, the Court has increasingly relied on citizenship and free movement to address questions of family status and sexual identity, areas traditionally considered matters of national competence.
Shipov extends this logic to gender identity. The case illustrates what I have previously described as the emergence of EU sexual citizenship – a constitutional development in which EU citizenship becomes a vehicle for recognising sexual and gender identities across the Union. Rather than relying primarily on anti-discrimination law or harmonisation under Article 19 TFEU, the Court increasingly uses citizenship as the doctrinal gateway for protecting these identities. From this perspective, EU citizenship increasingly operates not only as a market-based status but also as a normative framework that shapes the recognition of personal identity across Member States. By addressing issues of family status, sexual orientation, and gender identity through the lens of mobility rights, the Court gradually constructs a constitutional space in which certain aspects of personal identity become indirectly protected by EU law.
Technically, Shipov may appear to be a free movement case. In reality, it forms part of a broader constitutional evolution. By linking gender identity to the effectiveness of EU citizenship, the Court further expands the role of Union citizenship as a vehicle for protecting personal identity and dignity. More broadly, the judgment reflects a recurring tension within EU citizenship jurisprudence: while matters of personal status formally remain within the competence of Member States, they increasingly become subject to EU constraints when they affect the practical conditions under which Union citizens exercise their rights of movement and residence. Questions of names, family relations, and now gender identity thus appear less as purely domestic matters and more as elements of the legal infrastructure that allows EU citizenship to function in practice.
Whether this development represents a cautious doctrinal adjustment or a more ambitious constitutional shift remains open to debate. What is clear, however, is that EU citizenship is increasingly shaping the recognition of sexual and gender identities across the Union – even where the cross-border element remains comparatively modest.
The post Sexual Citizenship via Free Movement appeared first on Verfassungsblog.
CJEU: Judgment in Case C-43/24 Shipova – free movement and lived gender
Today, the CJEU delivered its ruling in the case C-43/24 Shipova, marking a historic step forward for trans people’s rights across the EU.
The Court stated that under EU law provisions on freedom of movement and fundamental right to private and family life, member states have an obligation to legally recognise the lived gender of their nationals who have exercised their right to move and reside in another member state in their civil status registers; i.e. they must have a functioning process for legal gender recognition (“LGR”) in place. This is because, as the Court confirmed, identity documents and passports are key for EU nationals to enjoy freedom of movement, so in order to avoid “considerable inconveniences” in particular during identity checks or cross-border travel or in professional settings. Therefore, member states must provide identity documents and civil registry entries matching the person’s lived gender. The Court also recalled that tolerating discrimination against trans persons breaches their dignity and freedom. It also decided that national courts are not bound by supreme court’s decisions that run contrary to today’s judgment and EU law.
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The Court of Justice of the European Union (CJEU) ruled Thursday that EU member states must update identity documents to reflect the gender identity of transgender citizens who have transitioned in another member state, finding that refusal to do so may violate the bloc’s guarantee of freedom of movement.
The court said discrepancies between a person’s lived gender identity and official identity documents can create practical difficulties during identity checks, travel, and professional activities, undermining the right to respect for private life under Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the right to freedom of movement under Article 21 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the European Union.
The case concerned a Bulgarian national identified under the pseudonym “Shipova,” who moved to Italy and underwent social and medical gender transition before requesting that Bulgarian authorities update her birth certificate. Officials in Bulgaria denied the request, citing national legal interpretations that define sex strictly on biological grounds. The dispute was referred to the EU’s highest court to determine whether such a refusal conflicted with EU law after the Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation rejected the possibility of legal gender reassignment for transgender people.
The court has previously addressed transgender rights in EU law. In the 1996 decision P v S and Cornwall County Council, the court ruled that discrimination arising from gender reassignment constitutes discrimination based on sex under EU equality law. The decision addresses tensions between EU rights and domestic laws in some member states where legal gender recognition remains restricted.
Bulgaria’s Supreme Court ruled in 2023 that national law does not permit legal gender changes. The CJEU noted that national courts must ensure that domestic rules do not prevent the effective application of EU law. The ruling follows a similar judgment issued by the CJEU in 2024 involving Romania, in which the court determined that authorities violated EU law by refusing to recognize a transgender man’s legal transition carried out in the United Kingdom. In the current case, the CJEU emphasized that national courts must set aside interpretations of domestic law that conflict with binding EU legal principles.
Earlier this month, Advocate General Richard de la Tour issued a non-binding opinion advising the court that national authorities should not refuse recognition of gender identity where such refusal interferes with the exercise of EU free movement rights.
Under EU judicial procedure, CJEU rulings are binding on national courts when interpreting EU law. The Bulgarian Supreme Court of Cassation must therefore apply the court’s interpretation when resolving the dispute. The ruling may have broader implications for transgender individuals in several EU countries where legal gender recognition procedures remain restricted or unavailable. National courts across the European Union are required to apply the CJEU’s interpretation of EU law when similar questions arise, potentially influencing how member states reconcile domestic civil status laws with EU fundamental rights protections.
The post EU court rules member states must recognize transgender identity in official documents appeared first on JURIST – News.
2026 WorldPride Human Rights Conference (Amsterdam, 5-7 August): Call for speakers (deadline: 21 March 2026)
2026 WorldPride Human Rights Conference (Amsterdam, 5-7 August). Registration for this conference starts next month, but the “Call for speakers” is already open, with a 21 March deadline. If you, or anyone you know, would like to present at the WorldPride conference, please have a look at: https://pride.amsterdam/en/event/human-rights-conference/.
Some quotes from the Call:
“Each session will generally have 75 minutes available. The format is flexible. The aim is to make every session as diverse, inspiring, and interactive as possible. So collaborate, present, inspire, demonstrate, organize a panel, divide the session into segments, in short: create impact with an unforgettable experience for participants.”
“The conference program is being developed with input from activists and Pride organizers around the world and is overseen by our advisory board and international sounding board. The advisory board will make an initial selection and, where necessary, connect parties to ensure impactful sessions.”
“Interested in participating as speaker, performer, session organiser, or panelist? You can register via this page and share your ideas (max 3 per account) with us. The deadline to submit a proposal is March 21!”
‘Presuming parentage in lesbian – as in heterosexual – couples?
New Article: Nikos Koumoutzis, ‘Presuming parentage in lesbian – as in heterosexual – couples? Equal treatment claims before the European Court of Human Rights: Boeckel and Gessner-Boeckel v Germany, and R.F. and Others v Germany’, The International Journal of Human Rights (2026):
‘It is increasingly common in married or registered lesbian couples to conceive children through assisted reproduction with donor sperm. In these families, parentage is automatically attributed to the woman giving birth, while the birth mother’s spouse or partner – sometimes even the egg provider – must typically undergo adoption to be recognised as the other parent. This starkly contrasts with heterosexual couples in which the birth mother’s spouse is the other parent by virtue of the presumption of legitimacy, without further steps, sparing stakeholders from legal uncertainty, costs, and emotional strain. This article examines how the European Court of Human Rights responds to claims of alleged discrimination caused by this disparity, with particular attention to Boeckel and Gessner-Boeckel v Germany and R.F. and Others v Germany. It argues that ‘biological differences’ between the couples are insufficient to explain the unequal treatment. At the same time, it considers whether such unequal treatment can be justified on grounds of collective interests, drawing on broader case law under the European Convention on Human Rights, where it provides necessary contextual background for specific points of the analysis. It concludes that, in certain circumstances, States retain discretion to refuse a gender-neutral extension of the presumption of legitimacy and thereby perpetuate the systemic imbalance in their family laws.’
US Supreme Court grants emergency relief in California gender identity case
The Supreme Court on Monday granted emergency relief to parents challenging California school policies on student gender identity, allowing a district court injunction to take effect while litigation continues in the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.
In an unsigned per curiam opinion, the Court held that the Ninth Circuit’s stay of the injunction was not justified under the governing four-factor test. It found that the parents, particularly those seeking religious exemptions, are likely to succeed on the merits “of their Free Exercise Clause claim.” It further noted that the nondisclosure rules are likely trigger strict scrutiny because they substantially interfere with “the right of parents to guide the religious development of their children.” The Court concluded that parents asserting due process claims are likely to prevail, citing longstanding precedent recognizing parental authority over children’s upbringing and education.
In a dissent, Justice Elena Kagan, joined by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, argued that the Court intervened prematurely while the case is still developing in the lower courts: “If nothing else, this Court owes it to a sovereign State to avoid throwing over its policies in a slapdash way, if the Court can provide normal procedures.” Justice Amy Coney Barrett, joined by Chief Justice John Roberts and Justice Brett Kavanaugh, indicated that she would have granted relief to the teacher plaintiffs.
The split decision follows a legal battle between religious parents and educators in California. Two sets of Catholic parents, represented by the Thomas More Society, challenged state school policies which prevent schools from disclosing students’ gender identities to their families, arguing that they violate the First Amendment’s Free Exercise Clause and the Fourteenth Amendment’s Due Process Clause. The plaintiffs stated that these policies misled them and secretly facilitated the children’s social transition. In contrast, California argued that students have the right to privacy regarding their gender expression, particularly if they fear rejection from their families. The state asserted that its school policies and state law are designed to strike a balance between parents’ rights and the students’ need for privacy.
The case will return to the Ninth Circuit while the district court’s injunction remains in effect for the parent class.
The post US Supreme Court grants emergency relief in California gender identity case appeared first on JURIST – News.
EU forces Ukraine to legalize same-sex couples as condition for accession
The European Commission has made it clear that Ukraine must introduce legal recognition of same-sex couples if it wishes to advance toward full European Union membership. According to Ukrainian media reports published on February 20, 2026, Brussels raised the issue during discussions on Ukraine’s Rule of Law Roadmap, explicitly linking it to the country’s obligations under the “Fundamentals” negotiation cluster, particularly Chapter 23 on the judiciary and fundamental rights.
More: https://ifamnews.com/en/eu-forces-ukraine-to-legalize-same-sex-couples-as-condition-for-accession
UN experts call on the UK to ensure equal rights for women, girls, and transgender individuals
A group of UN experts on Friday called for the United Kingdom to guarantee that the current reviews of statutory guidance under the Equality Act 2010 align with international human rights standards and provide the equal enjoyment of rights for women and girls, including the transgender community.
The group of experts expressed appreciation of the government’s assurances that the legislative review would be conducted in a non-discriminatory manner, commenting, “The present review represents an important opportunity for the United Kingdom to reaffirm its long-standing commitment to equality, dignity and the rule of law, and to ensure that the human rights of all are upheld in practice.”
This new development comes amid a changing legal horizon characterized by years of intense litigation, a polarized social climate, and conflicting guidance from equality organizations regarding the intersection of gender identity and biological sex. In April 2025, the UK Supreme Court ruled in For Women Scotland v The Scottish Ministers that references to “sex,” “man,” and “woman” in the Equality Act 2010 refer to an individual’s biological sex. This means that the legal sex of transgender individuals, which is determined by their possession of a Gender Recognition Certificate (GRC), is no longer considered their “sex” for the purposes of the Equality Act, rendering the marginalized community more vulnerable to exclusion from single-sex services and affecting their ability to challenge sex-based discrimination.
Following the 2025 ruling, organizations such as the Equality and Human Rights Commission (EHRC), the official regulator of the Equality Act 2010, began updating its guidelines to clarify that service providers were legally entitled to restrict access to single-sex spaces such as bathrooms based on biological sex. The interim guidance provided by the EHRC was challenged by the Good Law Project, which stated that it was legally flawed, a harmful interpretation of the Supreme Court ruling, and produced only nine days after the publication of the Supreme Court’s judgment, with minimal consultation on the issue sought.
The High Court dismissed the case on February 13, 2026, as it found that the Supreme Court’s ruling was properly applied and that the Good Law Project lacked the proper standing to bring the case, since it did not suffer direct harm as a result of the decision. In light of this, the group of UN experts pushed for the United Kingdom to ensure that the review process was inclusive and complied with international human rights frameworks such as Article 2(2) of the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR), which prohibits discrimination based on gender identity.
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US State Department resumes HIV prevention program excluding LGBT+
The US Department of State has resumed HIV prevention services under the president’s Emergency Plan for AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) after a temporary suspension of US foreign assistance, according to reports Thursday. The resumption comes with a restriction: pre-exposure prophylaxis (PrEP) will only be available to pregnant and breastfeeding women (PBFW), excluding LGBT+ individuals who are at high risk of HIV infection.
The February 10 PEPFAR Limited Waiver Approved Activities document states that: “People other than PBFW who may be at high risk of HIV infection or were previously initiated on a PrEP option cannot be offered PEPFAR-funded PrEP during this pause of U.S. Foreign Assistance or until further notice.” The restriction disproportionately impacts men who have sex with men and transgender individuals, populations that have historically faced higher rates of HIV transmission.
Human Rights Watch stated that even a temporary pause on PEPFAR programs could devastate vulnerable populations. Legal challenges have emerged in response to the freeze. On February 10, the AIDS Vaccine Advocacy Coalition (AVAC) and Journalism Development Network, Inc. sued Trump, alleging the freeze was illegal and unconstitutional. The next day, USAID contractors and non-governmental organizations filed a separate lawsuit, arguing that the freeze had already caused irreparable harm. A separate lawsuit, brought by a group of USAID employees, led a federal judge to issue an injunction on February 7, blocking the furloughing of USAID workers.
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International and Comparative SOGIESC Law - Professor Andreas R Ziegler 