Identità dei figli tra cognome, status filiationis e diritto di conoscere le proprie origini biologiche

The essay aims to enlighten emerging issues concerning children’s identity. Italian Law no. 76/2016 about homosexual “unions” didn’t consider that these new “families” might welcome children. No rule was enacted about the surname of children belonging to these families and born from medically assisted procreation. No answer also to the question: have those children the right to the disclosure of their biological origins? About the surname, the essay suggests that all children should have the surname of each of the two parents, no matter if natural, adoptive or intentional. To guarantee the identity of Italian children born to homosexual couples from medically assisted procreation done abroad the first step is to allow registration in Italy of a birth certificate with two mothers or two fathers, even if a surrogate mother carried abroad the pregnancy. Regarding the disclosure of biological origins, the essay argues that to deny access to the identity of gamete donors might be correct, but the identity of the surrogate mother can be more relevant to the child and it is the law of the nation where the contract was signed that may – or may not – allow access to this information.