Parliament adopted on second reading amendments to the Family Code for shared parenting

The Parliament adopted on second reading amendments to the Family Code, which allow the court to make decisions for shared upbringing of children after divorce.

According to the approved texts, when both parents express a desire for the child to have the opportunity to maintain full relationships with both and this is in the best interest of the child, the court may order the shared exercise of parental rights and obligations after the dissolution of the marriage.

In its decision, the court should determine specific measures for each parent - how they will exercise their rights and what their responsibilities will be in relation to care, support and contact with the child.

In cases where parents fail to reach an agreement on certain of their rights and obligations, the law provides that the court will decide on the disagreements that have arisen between them. This role of the court is explicitly recorded in the adopted amendments.

At the proposal of Denitsa Sacheva from GERB-SDS, the provisions were removed from the text, providing that if there are more than two non-fulfillments within one year of a court decision by the parent with whom the child is, the other parent can file a new claim for the protection of children's rights.

Thus, the possibility of systematically non-compliance with court decisions by the custodial parent automatically opening a procedure for a new claim by the other parent does not appear in the final version of the texts.

Earlier today, two separate protests related to the amendments to the Family Code were held in front of the National Assembly.

Citizens gathered to protest in support of the introduction of "shared parenting", insisting that the law guarantee more active participation of both parents in the lives of children after separation. The organizers and participants stressed that, in their opinion, such changes are necessary to protect the best interests of the child.

In parallel, a protest was held against the amendments to the Family Code, at which other citizens insisted that the bill should not be adopted. They expressed concerns that some of the provisions could harm children and lead to additional tension between separated parents.

The two events in front of the parliament highlighted the opposite public attitudes towards the idea of shared exercise of parental rights and towards the specific mechanisms by which this should be regulated in the law.