The European Economic Community (EEC), also known as the European Community, the Common Market, and the Community, originated through the European Coal and Steel Community (ECSC) Treaty. The inaugural agreement was signed in Paris on April 18, 1951, and became effective on July 25, 1952. The original members included Germany, France, Italy, and the Benelux countries of Belgium, Luxembourg, and the Netherlands. The primary task of the ECSC Treaty was to create a common market for coal and steel by prohibiting all duties on imports and exports and all quantitative and private restraints on competition. This Treaty is considered the first step towards a united Europe. Its decisive innovation was to entitle the Community's institutions established by the Treaty to directly bind member states and enterprises by means of its decisions.

The Grupo Andino (also known as the Andean Common Market (or ANCOM), Acuerdo de Cartagena, and the Andean Pact) is an organization for the economic integration of the five South American countries located in the central and northern parts of the massive Andean mountain range. The present members of the organization are Bolivia, Colombia, Ecuador, Peru and Venezuela. Originally, when the Grupo Andino was established by means of a treaty known as the Cartagena Agreement (Acuerdo de Cartagena) in 1969, Chile was one of the founding members, whereas Venezuela abstained from joining the organization until 1973. As Chile began to develop a more flexible foreign trade and investment policy in the middle 1970's than was acceptable to the other Grupo Andino countries, it gradually withdrew from the organization's activities, and finally ceased to be a member in late 1976.

Belgium has a new law on affiliation. It was enacted on March 31, 1987, and replaced the existing provisions in Book I, Title VII, of the Civil Code. The new provisions are contained in articles 312 including 341 of the Civil Code. The parent-child relationship has, however, further ramifications in other parts of the Civil Code dealing with certificates of the civil status, missing persons, marriage, divorce, parental authority, minority, guardianship and emancipation, successions, and gifts inter vivos and wills, which were also amended to reflect the new concepts. Further necessary modifications were made in the Judiciary Code, the Criminal Code, and in some other existing legislative texts. The new legislation also has extensive transitory provisions. In addition, the pertinent modifications affecting adoption were made in the Law of April 27, 1987, Modifying Several Legal Provisions Concerning Adoption, and a new law, the Law of May 20, 1987, Concerning the Abandonment of Minor Children, further improved the standing of children.