Opinion of the Commissioner for Human Rights on two draft laws on registered partnerships
Date:
In light of the ECHR judgments, Poland is obliged to introduce the right of same-sex persons to enter into a formalized union, which is an independent legal institution with specific rights and obligations.
The introduction of a civil partnership in the proposed form by means of an ordinary act does not violate the Constitution of the Republic of Poland, including its Article 18, which states that marriage is a union between a woman and a man.
The draft laws are based to a significant extent on the automatic extension of the scope of the rights and obligations currently applicable to spouses to persons in civil partnerships.
This legislative measure is largely unambiguous, but it is not required by the ECHR and does not always correspond to the specific content of a civil partnership and the differences between this relationship and marriage.
It is primarily about significantly simplifying the procedure for dissolving a relationship. This inconsistency can be removed by introducing guarantees of the stability and durability of a civil partnership, or by differentiating certain rights and obligations of persons in a civil partnership towards spouses.
The Commissioner for Human Rights Marcin Wiącek, presented to the Minister for Equality Katarzyna Kotula, an opinion on the draft Act on Registered Civil Partnerships and on the Act on the Provisions introducing the Act on Registered Civil Partnerships (the opinion concerns the version of 18 October 2024).
XI.022.1.2024
