CEDH · PRESS;GENERAL;ENG — 16 octobre 2002

.s800EAC49 { font-size:12pt } .s5FFF0A77 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:1pt } .sBB9EE52A { font-family:Arial } .sFE10DC93 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:center } .s29100277 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold } .sA1D3DA2E { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify } .s94935B0F { width:389.85pt; display:inline-block } .sA36B60A1 { font-family:Arial; font-style:italic } .s32563E28 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt } .s4DDA3AA3 { font-family:Arial; font-weight:bold; font-style:italic } .sD35C6159 { width:1.54pt; display:inline-block } .s4598CDF { width:70.9pt; display:inline-block } .s641714D8 { width:32.4pt; display:inline-block } .s38DD6A04 { width:18.2pt; display:inline-block } .s2EB42ED2 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; font-size:10pt } .sB4D5CB4E { width:4.94pt; display:inline-block } .sC5412BEF { width:51.05pt; display:inline-block } .s85226119 { margin-top:0pt; margin-bottom:0pt; text-align:justify; font-size:10pt }   EUROPEAN COURT OF HUMAN RIGHTS     737   16.10.2001   Press release issued by the Registrar   HEARING IN THE CASE OF ODIEVRE v. FRANCE   Tuesday 16 October 2001 at 2.30 p.m.   The applicant   The case concerns an application brought by a French national, Pascale Odièvre, who was born in 1965 and lives in Paris. She is unemployed.   Summary of the facts   The present application concerns the principle of confidentiality in respect of birth parents’ identity and the resulting impossibility for the applicant to obtain information about her origins.   The applicant was born on 23 March 1965 in Paris. Her mother, who requested that her identity remain confidential, formally abandoned her child to the Social Services Department. After being handed over to the child-care service, the applicant was registered as a child in care and subsequently adopted by Mr and Mrs Odièvre, whose name she bears.   After learning that in 1990 she had been registered as a child in care by the child-care service of the Seine département , the applicant managed to secure the disclosure of non-identifying details relating to her birth family. On 27 January 1998 the applicant lodged an application with the Paris tribunal de grande instance seeking a “waiver of the confidentiality in respect of her birth parents’ identity through the disclosure to her of all documents, civil-status certificates and full birth certificates”. She submitted that she had discovered that her birth parents had had a son in 1963 and two more sons after 1965; that she had been refused disclosure of information about her brothers’ civil status on the ground that such communication would infringe the principle of confidentiality in respect of her birth parents’ identity; and that, having learnt of her brothers’ existence, she was entitled to request a waiver of the confidentiality in respect of their birth parents’ identity.   On 2 February 1998 the court registrar sent the file back to the applicant’s lawyer informing him that “... it appears that the applicant could always bring proceedings in the Administrative Court to compel the authorities, if she can, to disclose her birth parents’ identity, which would in any event be contrary to the Law of 8 January 1993” (which provides that applications for disclosure of a birth mother’s identity shall be inadmissible if the mother has requested that her identity remain confidential - Article 341(1) of the Civil Code).   Complaints   Relying on Article 8 (right to respect for private and family life) of the European Convention of Human Rights, the applicant complains of her inability to secure the disclosure of identifying details about her birth family. She complains of the substantial damage which she has sustained as a result of being deprived of the possibility of rewriting her personal history. She also submits that the principle of confidentiality, as established in France, amounts to discrimination based on birth, and relies on Article 14 (prohibition of discrimination) of the Convention.   Procedure   The application was lodged with the European Commission of Human Rights on 12   March 1998. Since 1 November 1998 the application has been examined by the European Court of Human Rights.   Composition of the Court   The case will be heard by a Chamber composed as follows: Loukis Loucaides (Cypriot), President, Jean-Paul Costa (French), Pranas Kūris (Lithuanian), Françoise Tulkens (Belgian), Karel Jungwiert (Czech), Hanne Sophie Greve (Norwegian), Mindia Ugrekhelidze (Georgian), judges , Nicolas Bratza (British), Kristaq Traja (Albanian), substitute judges ,   and also Sally Dollé , Section Registrar .   Representatives of the parties   Government:   François Alabrune , Agent ; Laurence Delahaye , Olivia Wingert ,   Sophie   Boissard , Catherine Briand , Advisers ;   Applicant:   Didier Mendelsohn , Counsel ; Odile Roy , Adviser .   The applicant will also attend the hearing.   ***   After the hearing the Court will begin its deliberations, which are held in private. Judgment will be delivered at a later date.   Registry of the European Court of Human Rights F – 67075 Strasbourg Cedex Contacts:   Roderick Liddell (telephone: (0)3 88 41 24 92)   Emma Hellyer (telephone: (0)3 90 21 42 15) Fax: (0)3 88 41 27 91   The European Court of Human Rights was set up in Strasbourg in 1959 to deal with alleged violations of the 1950 European Convention on Human Rights. On 1 November 1998 a full-time Court was established, replacing the original two-tier system of a part-time Commission and Court.