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In a decision published today, the Federal Supreme Court has abandoned the old 10/16 rule. Read more

In a controversial ruling, the Federal Supreme Court is attempting to undermine the recently introduced joint custody law. In a press release, GeCoBi criticizes this attempt by Switzerland's highest court to interfere with political autonomy. Politicians have (belatedly, but at least…) determined that after a separation or divorce, both parents should remain responsible for their children. We do not want the Federal Supreme Court to dismantle this fundamental right through the back door. Read more

This statement by Ingeborg Bachmann is the guiding principle of our position on paternity tests. The Federal Council threatens fathers who want to clarify the parentage of their (alleged or actual) children with up to three years in prison. We oppose this! Read more

In the coming days, the Council of States, as the second chamber, is scheduled to vote on the revision of maintenance law. GeCoBi strongly rejects this one-sided attack on single and divorced fathers. It cements an outdated division of roles and prevents both parents from playing a significant role in the care and upbringing of their children. Read more

Today, July 1, 2014, joint parental custody becomes the norm. Switzerland is one of the last European countries to have enacted a modern law on this. Here is our press release on this occasion: Read more

The Federal Council's proposal for a new regulation of child support payments has reached the Legal Affairs Committee of the National Council. Compared to its initial presentation, it has undergone hardly any changes – and certainly no improvements – following the consultation process. However, during the Legal Affairs Committee's deliberations, we had the opportunity to present our ideas for a simple and fair regulation of child support to this body.

The GeCoBi proposal for regulating child support represents the practical implementation of the principle of shared parenting. It is based on the simple fact that a child fundamentally has two parents who are obligated to care for them. Due to the prohibition of discrimination in the constitution, these two parents also have equal rights and obligations – particularly regarding the duty of care and the right to pursue a profession. This results in a shared responsibility for providing for the child's needs for care and maintenance. Of course, not all parents want to or can (yet) live according to a 50/50 custody model. However, this model provides an excellent starting point for negotiations to reach mutually acceptable solutions tailored to the individual needs of the couple.

Recommendations to the Legal Affairs Committee

This paper presents the concrete implementation of our approach. It contains numerous numerical examples for typical separation scenarios. They all demonstrate the practical feasibility of our approach.

The Federal Council's proposal for a new regulation of child support payments has reached the Legal Affairs Committee of the National Council. Compared to its initial presentation, it has undergone hardly any changes – and certainly no improvements – following the consultation process. However, during the Legal Affairs Committee's deliberations, we had the opportunity to present our ideas for a simple and fair regulation of child support to this body. Read more