Facts
The Federal Supreme Court decides on an appeal by the Federal Department of Justice and Police against the decision of the Administrative Court of the Canton of St. Gallen. The subject matter is the registration of a Californian court decision and a birth certificate in the civil status register, which concern the parent-child relationship between D. and the respondents established through surrogacy.
D. was born on April 11, 2011 in California. The respondents A.B. and C.B. are Swiss citizens living in a registered partnership. They have concluded a surrogacy contract with the married couple F.G. and H.G. residing in California. The Californian court has, in a paternity judgment dated February 24, 2011, established A.B. as the genetic father and C.B. as the presumed second father of the child.
Considerations
The Federal Supreme Court examines whether the recognition of the Californian judgment and the birth certificate is compatible with Swiss public policy (ordre public). It finds that the prohibition of surrogacy in Switzerland is enshrined at the constitutional level and is considered a fundamental conviction of the legal understanding here.
The Federal Supreme Court considers the recognition of the parent-child relationship between D. and the first respondent as the genetic father to be compatible with public policy. However, the recognition of the parent-child relationship between D.…