Back

Themes: Right to family life Freedom of religion and belief Austria

Hoffman v. Austria  | 1993

Reforms made after mother lost custody of her children simply because of her religion

…a distinction based essentially on a difference in religion alone is not acceptable.

Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights, June 1993

Background

Ingrid Hoffmann was a Jehovah’s Witness.

When she and her husband divorced, an Austrian ruled that Ingrid should have custody of the couple’s two children. Relying on evidence from an expert child psychologist, the court found that Ingrid had stronger emotional ties with the children and that separating them could cause emotional harm.

However, this ruling was overturned by Austria's Supreme Court. The Supreme Court accepted that it was usually best for the mother to look after young children. However, the court ruled that this did not apply in this case, on the grounds that the mother was a Jehovah’s Witness, and her faith could have harmful consequences on the children’s well-being. She lost custody of her children, and the father was given custody instead.

Judgment of the European Court of Human Rights

The European court ruled that the decision to deny Ingrid custody of her children had been based on her religion and this difference in treatment had not been acceptable. The decision had been discriminatory and without proper justification, in violation of Ingrid’s rights.

Follow-up

The Austrian government took steps to make sure that the same violation would not happen again, by issuing a decree about the European court’s judgment to the relevant authorities. The judgment was also the subject of an in-depth study by Austrian family law judges.

Additional information

Themes:

Related examples

Teachers stop hitting children after Scottish mums complain to Strasbourg

Grace Campbell and Jane Cosans sent their children to state schools which continued to allow the use of corporal punishment. The two mothers complained to the European court, which found that this violated their right to have their children educated in line with their own convictions. Soon afterwards, the UK abolished the use of corporal punishment in state schools.

Themes: Right to family life United Kingdom

Read more

Father wins battle to see his son - and rights for all Czech parents

When Vladimír Zavřel’s wife left the family home, she took the couple’s six-year-old son and stopped Vladimír seeing him. Vladimír got a court order for contact with his boy, but the authorities failed to enforce it. The European court ruled that this had violated the right to family life. Contact was re-established and the law was changed to prevent similar situations happening again.

Themes: Right to family life Czechia

Read more

Woman wins landmark case for the rights of single mothers and their children

Paula Marckx was unmarried when she gave birth. She was shocked to find out that, because she was single, her baby girl would not be recognised as hers unless she went through a legal process. Even after this, her daughter would have a reduced legal status and would not inherit from her. The European court ruled this violated their rights – leading to a change in the law.

Themes: Right to family life Belgium

Read more