Facts
Karl von Tobel, domiciled in Meilen, was sentenced on April 20, 1953 by the Cantonal Court of St. Gallen to a prison sentence of 2 years. During his incarceration on February 8, 1954 in the cantonal penitentiary of St. Gallen, the prison administration informed the guardianship authority of Meilen, so that it could take the necessary measures to place von Tobel under guardianship. However, the guardianship authority of Meilen declared itself incompetent, as von Tobel's last domicile was not in Meilen. It attempted to determine where von Tobel had last resided, but the municipalities questioned also denied their local competence. The guardianship authority of St. Gallen, seized by the authority of Meilen, rejected the request for guardianship on the grounds that von Tobel's last domicile was not in St. Gallen. The guardianship authority of Meilen then filed an appeal with the Federal Tribunal under Art. 83(e) FSCA in order to compel the guardianship authority of St. Gallen to open a guardianship procedure within the meaning of Art. 371 or 370 CC.Considerations
The Federal Tribunal considers the appeal to be inadmissible. Although Art. 83(e) FSCA grants the guardianship authority of the place of origin the right to act against that of the domicile in the event of a dispute over the competences and obligations of the former, this right is limited. Indeed, when the refusal of the authority seized can be the subject of an ordinary appeal, as is the case here under Art. 378(2) CC, the constitutional appeal is no longer admissible. Furthermore, the…