In the city of Toulouse in southern France, a court of appeal recognised the right of a Trans woman to be legally considered as the mother of her child. The child was conceived after the woman’s legal gender was recognised. 

Since 2016, the law in France allows Transgender individuals to change their legal gender without requiring psychiatrist certificates, nor proof of gender reassignment surgery or sterilisation. However, according to the court of appeal, the legislation still “leaves an undeniable legal vacuum” because there is no provision in regards to the filiation of children born after the change in legal gender of one of the biological parents.

Toulouse : Claire, femme transgenre, se bat depuis 8 ans pour être reconnue comme la mère de sa fille biologique https://t.co/9AmsLA6bZT pic.twitter.com/hdOiFwjc4D

— L’importante (@limportante_fr) February 9, 2022

This is what the peculiarity of this case is about. The woman’s daughter was born in 2014, three years after the legal gender change had taken place in 2011. It led to her being excluded from the child’s birth certificate as the civil registrar refused to recognise her as the mother. Only the gestational mother appeared in the child’s birth certificate and she was advised to simply adopt her own biological daughter.

Finding this unacceptable, the couple took legal action. In 2018, a court of appeal in Montpellier, another town in France, ruled that she was to be recognised as the “biological parent” in the child’s birth certificate. However, in 2020, the French Court of Cassation ruled that the woman couldn’t be recognised as the biological mother and the case was deferred to the Toulouse court of appeal.

Finally, on February 9, the court in Toulouse concluded that the Trans woman should also be included as the mother in the birth certificate. The decision essentially established that two maternal affiliations could be approved in the case of children born to a couple in which one of the two spouses is Trans.

TENI are delighted to bring some good news. As a result of administrative changes in the gender recog act review there is no longer a need to provide a deed poll / proof of use of nameapplying for a Gender Recognition Cert. your new name on the application form is sufficient. pic.twitter.com/szPti7duRH

— TENI (@TENI_Tweets) November 9, 2021

The couple’s lawyer, Clelia Richard, commented on the ruling by saying: “It’s a revolution, a total victory in this fight. This is not the only child concerned, it is a ruling that opens a new horizon and will make many parents and future parents relieved”.

As of November 2021, after a review of the Gender Recognition Act, in Ireland, the only requirement to apply for a Gender Recognition Cert is the use of the person’s chosen name on the application form. This move has certainly made it easier for Trans folks to have their gender legally recognised and, hopefully, it will remove barriers for parenting too.