Statue of Justice (icon image)
Photo: DPA
Italy's Constitutional Court has outlawed the practice of automatically giving children their father's surname.
The country's highest court says the existing norms are unconstitutional, "discriminatory and harmful to the child's identity."
Parliament was asked to change the law.
Parents should choose surnames together
The court stressed that both parents should be involved in choosing their child's surname, as it is "a fundamental element of personal identity."
Henceforth, "the child takes on the surnames of both parents in the order agreed upon by them," the judges ruled.
Unless the parents decide together to use only one parent's last name.
In the event of a disagreement, a court will decide.
ptz/AFP
