Decision of the Court of Milano, V Criminal Section, 15 March 2014

The case concerned the recognition in Italy of the birth certificate, issued in Ukraine, of a child born there from a surrogate mother in conformity with Ukrainian legislation. Despite this particular kind of medical assisted procreation is prohibited in Italy, the recognition was not contrary to public order; and this because the principle that the rights of the child must be protected is well-established in the Italian legal order, by virtue of the ECHR as interpreted by the European Court of Human Rights, as well of Constitution and ordinary laws. The Court further decided to not proceed against the spouses who had declared that they both were the biological parents of the child; for the Court, this conduct did not qualified as “alteration of the status of children” under Article 567 of penal code, but fell within the scope of Article 495, concerning the making of false statements. Latter is a less serious offense and, if committed abroad, may be prosecuted only at the request of the Minister for justice (and this requirement was not met in the case).