Type: Judgment

Authority: European Authorities: Euopean Union' Court of Justice

Date: 12/22/2010

Subject: The Court affirmed that a Member State may refuse to recognize on public policy grounds the surname of a national which has been obtained in another Member State and contains a title of nobility. This refusal justifiably undermines the freedom of movement and reside enjoyed by citizens of the Union, because the Austrian Law on the abolition of the nobility constitutes implementation of the more general principle of equality before the law, a principle which the European Union legal system seeks to ensure as a general principle of law.

Parties: Ilonka Sayn Wittgenstein

Classification: Freedoms - Art. 7 Privacy - Equality - Art. 20 Equality - Citizens’ rights - Art. 45 Freedom of movement - Freedom of residence

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Notices: Effectiveness of the Charter
The Court made reference to the Charter to confirm the existence of the principle of equality as a general principle of the European Union Law.