Facts
The Federal Tribunal was seized of an appeal against a judgment of the Appeals Chamber of the Vaud Cantonal Tribunal, which had declared null the marriage between Emilio Morosoli and Alice Bernath, a Romanian national, pursuant to Art. 120 para. 4 CC. The facts establish that Ms. Bernath married Mr. Morosoli with the aim of acquiring Swiss nationality by circumventing the rules on naturalization, without having the real intention of founding a genuine marital community. Although the couple had intimate relations and Ms. Bernath brought personal effects to the marital domicile, their cohabitation lasted only one week, and Ms. Bernath subsequently led an independent existence. The Federal Tribunal confirmed that the conditions of Art. 120 para. 4 CC were met and that the marriage had to be declared null, Ms. Bernath being in bad faith within the meaning of Art. 134 para. 1 CC.Considerations
According to Art. 120 para. 4 CC, the marriage is null when the woman does not intend to establish a marital community, but wants to circumvent the rules on naturalization. This provision was introduced into the Swiss Civil Code to allow the sanctioning of so-called "nationality marriages", concluded solely for the purpose of acquiring Swiss nationality.
However, the Federal Tribunal has specified that the marriage is not null when the foreign woman, although having married a Swiss citizen with the intention of acquiring his nationality, was nevertheless determined to establish a genuine marital community. Only marriages concluded without any intention of creating such…