UNMARRIED COHABITING COUPLES BEFORE THE EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS: PARITY WITH MARRIAGE?


11 Colum. J. Eur. L. 151 (2004)

Dr. Susana Sanz Caballero. Jean Monnet Professor, University Cardenal Herrera-CEU, Spain.

The court finds that, though in some fields the de facto relationship of cohabitants is recognized, there still exist differences in legal status and legal effects. Marriage continues to be characterized by a corpus of rights and obligations that differentiate it markedly from the situation of a man and woman who cohabit.