Civil Union
The act of 23 November 1998 granted statutory cohabitation (Dutch: wettelijke samenwoning; French: cohabitation légale) in Belgium. The act gives limited rights to registered same-sex and opposite-sex couples by inserting a Title V-bis on statutory cohabitation in the Belgian Civil Code and by amending certain provisions of the Belgian Civil Code and the Belgian Judicial Code. However, persons who are not a couple can also make a declaration of statutory cohabitation; this includes relatives.
The law was legally published on 12 January 1999. It went into force on 1 January 2000, according to a royal order signed on 14 December and published on 23 December 1999.
Read more about this topic: Same-sex Marriage In Belgium
Famous quotes containing the words civil and/or union:
“The cause of civil liberty must not be surrendered at the end of one, or even one hundred defeats.”
—Abraham Lincoln (1809–1865)
“Let’s have the Union restored as it was, if we can; but if we can’t, I’m in favor of the Union as it wasn’t.”
—Artemus Ward (1834–1867)