Description

This volume contains articles on three issues that at the dawn of the 21st century have provoked passionate discussion. Legislative measures are taken, judicial decisions vary also within a jurisdiction, and arguments in legal literature are exchanged. The topics concern:
(1) (Compulsory) arrangements regarding children
(2) Registration schemes for same-sex couples: new jurisdictions
(3) The effectiveness of the pater est rule

The contributions are preceded by two introductory articles. The historical introduction addresses the ‘cultural constraints argument’ which according to a few legal scholars prevents both spontaneous and deliberate harmonization of family law. Is family law indeed embedded in unique national (legal) culture? What lessons can be learnt from the past? The methodological introduction proffers some general ideas as to how comparative family law is perceived and what it should entail whereby a comparison is made between more recent developments in Europe and the United States of America.