Law of Free Unions will go into effect with two constitutional appeals

On January 1st the Law of Free Unions will go into force in Jalisco, which allows to formalize before the public notary the bond between two people of the same sex, but also the relations of non conventional families that live under the same roof.

However, two constitutional appeals are still being examined against this legal framework before the Supreme Court of Justice of the Nation (SCJN), one presented by the Attorney General of the Republic (PGR), but not to revoke the legislation, but to modify it and allow adoptions.

The demand presented on December 2nd was admitted by the minister Olga Sánchez Cordero for its study. For their part, the local deputies of the National Action Party (PAN) are trying to invalidate the complete law, alleging juridical inconsistencies.

In an interview, Enrique Velázquez, deputy of the PRD promoter of the Law of Free Unions, affirmed that these appeals will not affect that the legislation will go into force on January 1st of 2014, as the only transitory law stipulates.

We have already spoken with the president of the School of Notaries, it is logical that doubts persist for being about a formality that is not common; but there is openess from many federals”, he stated.

The free unions will be celebrated in front of the public notary, without more requirements than a birth certificate of each of the parts, official identification, and if its the case, record of divorce or of death of the spouse.

The fees of the notary for this agreement are around 900 pesos, although in the law they are calculated by number of minimum wages. Once this free union is formalized, a copy for the archive of public instruments of the State will need to be submitted.

In accordance to the law of only 25 articles, the free union is only about an agreement, not about a civil state and it can only be signed by adults. Those who are currently married or have another free union will not be able to join in another union.

Furthermore, the free union generates the reciprocal duty to provide food and the parts have the right to reciprocally inherit by legitimate succession and can legitimately demand benefits that under the modalities of pensions, social provisions or other analogous rights are contemplated by the law.

The adoption of children is not allowed in the Free Unions and to conclude this figure, a judicial intervention is not required and can be done in a unilateral way.

[readon1 url="http://www.lajornadajalisco.com.mx/2013/12/30/ley-de-libre-convivencia-entrara-en-vigor-con-dos-controversias-constitucionales-pendientes/"]Source: La Jornada Jalisco Translated by Rene Tripp[/readon1]