| Applicant name | FORMELA AND OTHERS |
| Applicant type | natural person |
| Number of applicants | 6 |
| Country | Poland |
| Application no. | 58828/12 40795/17 55306/18 55321/18 45301/19 |
| Date | 19/09/2024 |
| Judges | Péter Paczolay, President, Gilberto Felici, Raffaele Sabato |
| Institution | Court |
| Type | Judgment |
| Outcome Art. 8 | violation |
| Reason | Positive obligation |
| Type of privacy | relational privacy |
| Keywords | Gay couple; legal recognition |
| Facts of the case | The applicants complained under Article 8 of the Convention of a total lack of recognition of their relationships as couples in Poland, in that it was impossible for them to enter together into any type of legally recognised union. The applicants further complained that their marriages contracted abroad were not recognised by the Polish authorities in any way. |
| Analysis | The Court concludes that by refusing to register the applicants’ marriages under any form and failing to ensure that they have a specific legal framework providing for recognition and protection, the Polish authorities have left them in a legal vacuum and have not provided for the core needs of recognition and protection of same-sex couples in a stable and committed relationship. The Court finds that none of the public interest grounds put forward by the Government prevail over the applicants’ interest in having their respective relationships adequately recognised and protected by law. |
| Other Article violation? | no need to examine the complaints under Article 14 of the Convention taken in conjunction with Article 8 of the Convention; |
| Damage awarded | Holds that the finding of a violation constitutes in itself sufficient just satisfaction for any non-pecuniary damage sustained by the applicants; Holds, (a) that the respondent State is to pay the applicants Ms Handzlik-Rosuł and Ms Rosuł jointly, within three months, EUR 600 (six hundred euros), plus any tax that may be chargeable to them, in respect of costs and expenses, to be converted into the currency of the respondent State at the rate applicable at the date of settlement; |
| Documents | Judgment |