MEDICINSKE USLUGE PRILAGOĐAVANjA POLA I OSTVARIVANjE PRAVA NA RODNI IDENTITET

Abstract

The right to recognition of gender identity was recognised to transgender persons in 2002 by well-known decision of the European Court of Human Rights in case Goodwin v United Kingdom. Thus, the Court established positive obligation on all Contracting States to enable legal recognition of preferred gender in cases of transsexuality. It was left to national legislations to decide what requirements are necessary for legal recognition of preferred gender. Establishing the right to gender identity means also to determine the court or administrative authority with jurisdiction to make decisions that are legal grounds for changing of gender data in birth records. However, national legislations of Contracting States differ greatly from one country to another in many issues concerning enforcement of the right to gender identity. Those issues refer primarily to gender recognition requirements and legal effects of decision on recognition of preferred gender. The focus in this paper will be on the need of taking certain medical services as requirements for legal change of sex in the birth records. Special attention will be paid to the latest amendments of the domestic legislation on registers of civil status, as well as recent case law of the European Court of Human Rights in case A.P., Garçon and Nicot v. France from 2017.