Diritto Pubblico Comparato ed Europeo

Sommario

In Switzerland, a handful of politicians, experts and – above all – journalists pretend that the future of Swiss federalism is the merging of the cantons. They consider the latter too small to survive in a globalized or even europeanized environment. The aim of this article is to re- mind of the dangers linked to this notion of merging. A short reminder of the history of feder- alism worldwide should recall the importance of territory in a federal organization. Examples taken from Switzerland, especially the long process driving to the creation of the new canton of Jura, will show how difficult it is – even in a very democratic and legalist environment – to change borders. This Swiss experience (but also experiences made abroad) show that cantons’ merging can be uncertain, difficult, premature and even dangerous. Instead of diffusing differ- ences, merging the cantons can create more homogenous linguistic or religious “blocks”, which can become an obstacle to the peaceful co-existence. In 2002, the draft to merge the cantons of Vaud and Geneva has been rejected by about 80% of the voters. Those who want to make Swiss cantons “euro-compatible” should not forget that Switzerland as a whole has the size of a European region.

Abstract

The article is focused on the family law in the German legal system. First of all, the author considers the legal sources, the Fundamental Law and the Civil Code. Besides the traditional family, the author analyzes the new models of family – same-sex marriage and mixed couple – and also adoption.