In the mother's surname: the historic ruling of the Constitutional Court in Italy

 On Wednesday 27 April, with a ruling that many have defined as epochal, the Constitutional Court declared illegitimate the rules that in Italy require children to automatically give their father's surname.

The constitutional judges, while waiting for the Parliament to approve a specific law, have established new principles : parents will be able to decide whether to give their children only the surname of the father , only that of the mother, or both surnames . In the absence of an agreement, the new standard for children to be born will be to have the surnames of both parents . 

The ruling overturns decades of patriarchal family legacy, which largely left women out of the decision-making process.

I agree with  Gaia Pianigiani of New Times.