Different family models

The concept of a family evolves, and may comprise different models of relationships between family members which are protected by the right to a private and family life.

A legally recognized relationship

The Slovenian Family Code defines a family in a narrow sense – as the relationship between:  

  • parents and their children, while they are still part of a common household

A family, in a narrow sense, is a legally recognized relationship between parents and their children based on biological ties or adoption

important From the legal point of view, relations between an adoptive parent and an adopted child are the same as the family relations between a parent and his/her biological child.

A single parent family

A family may also consist of one parent living together with his/her child. 

example A single mother who is raising her child, even if the child’s father is unknown, will be considered a family.

Partnership

The Slovenian Family Code recognizes two types of partnerships which are also protected by the right to a private and family life.
Marriage
A marriage is a cohabitation between a man and a woman who have legally concluded their relationship – got married.

important On 16 June 2022, the Constitutional Court found that such a regime, where only two persons of different sexes can enter into marriage and where same-sex partners living in a formal partnership cannot adopt a child together, discriminates against same-sex couples. It gave the legislator a six-month deadline to abolish the unconstitutional regulation. It further ruled that, until the unconstitutionality is remedied, the following shall be deemed to apply:

  • marriage is a living union between two persons, irrespective of sex, and
  • same-sex partners living in a civil partnership may jointly adopt a child under the same conditions as spouses.
Cohabitation
A man and a woman’s close personal relationship, that has developed without a legal conclusion of the relationship, may also be legally recognized. A number of factors may be relevant in assessing whether such relationship can be officially considered a cohabitation: 
  • whether the couple lives together
  • the length of their relationship
  • whether there are reasons for the marriage between them to be invalid
  • whether they have demonstrated their commitment to each other by other means, such as mutual emotional attachment, desire and will of both, that their relationship be recognized as such a community, economic attachment and the like
In Slovenia, cohabiting couples are equal in rights and obligations to married couples.
 
example A couple that has been living together for several years, is emotionally attached as lovers, shares finances, but hadn’t got married, will be considered living in a cohabitation partnership.

Same-sex couples

A relationship between two persons of the same-sex who are co-habiting, whether they are in a registered partnership or not, may fall within the concept of family life.
In Slovenia, they can either formally enter a civil union or their factual relationship may be recognized as a non-formal civil union.
In order to evaluate whether the relationship of a same-sex couple can be considered a non-formal civil union, the same factors have to be evaluated as in the case of a co-habiting opposite-sex couple. 
In Slovenia, same-sex couples living in a non-formal civil union are equal in rights and obligations to couples who have formally entered a civil union.

[important] On 16 June 2022, the Constitutional Court found that such a regime, where only two persons of different sexes can enter into marriage and where same-sex partners living in a formal partnership cannot adopt a child together, discriminates against same-sex couples. It gave the legislator a six-month deadline to abolish the unconstitutional regulation. It further ruled that, until the unconstitutionality is remedied, the following shall be deemed to apply:

  • marriage is a living union between two persons, irrespective of sex, and
  • same-sex partners living in a civil partnership may jointly adopt a child under the same conditions as spouses.

Resources

Last updated 25/01/2024