Case Law Search

Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Human Rights - Art. 20 | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, return refused

Appeal dismissed and return refused; the return of the child would be contrary to the basic principles of Spanish law concerning the protection of human rights and basic liberties; the strict standard required under Article 20 had been made out.

Return ordered

Return ordered; the State was liable for travel costs involved in the return but the court reserved the right to recover some or all of those costs from the mother.

Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Return refused

Return refused; the removal was not wrongful as the father was not exercising his rights of custody at the time of removal and therefore no rights of custody had been breached.

Habitual Residence - Art. 3

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed, removal wrongful and return ordered; the child was habitually resident in the United States on the relevant date.

Rights of Custody - Art. 3

Return ordered with undertakings offered

Return ordered with undertakings offered; the removal was in breach of the father's actually exercised rights of custody.

Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Appeal dismissed, return refused

Appeal dismissed and return refused; the removal was wrongful, but Article 13(1)(b) had been proved to the standard required under the Convention.

Acquiescence - Art. 13(1)(a) | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b) | Settlement of the Child - Art. 12(2) | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Procedural Matters

Voluntary return agreed following direct judicial communication between the relevant courts in the jurisdiction of the child's habitual residence (British Columbia, Canada) and the jurisdiction of refuge (Oregon, USA).

Aims of the Convention - Preamble, Arts 1 and 2 | Objections of the Child to a Return - Art. 13(2) | Settlement of the Child - Art. 12(2) | Human Rights - Art. 20 | Issues Relating to Return

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed and return ordered; the removal had been wrongful and none of the exceptions had been proved to the standard required under the Convention.

Removal and Retention - Arts 3 and 12 | Consent - Art. 13(1)(a) | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Return refused

Removal wrongful but return refused; a return would expose the child to a grave risk of an intolerable situation.

Aims of the Convention - Preamble, Arts 1 and 2 | Consent - Art. 13(1)(a)

Challenge upheld; the actions of the Swiss authorities had led to a breach of the father's right to family life under Art 8 ECHR.

Settlement of the Child - Art. 12(2) | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, return refused

Appeal dismissed and return refused; more than one year had passed between the retention and the filing of the legal action and it was not contested that the children were settled in their new environment. 

Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Appeal dismissed, return refused

The decision at first instance was confirmed and the children's return was refused on the basis of Article 13(1)(b). The ruling should be sent urgently to the Dutch authorities via the French Central Authority, in accordance with Article 11(6) of the Brussels II a Regulation (Council Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 of 27 November 2003).

Aims of the Convention - Preamble, Arts 1 and 2 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b) | Objections of the Child to a Return - Art. 13(2) | Settlement of the Child - Art. 12(2) | Human Rights - Art. 20 | Procedural Matters

Return ordered

Appeal allowed and return ordered; the retention had been wrongful and none of the exceptions had been established to the standard required under the Convention.

European Convention on Human Rights (ECHR)

The Court found that there had been a violation of Article 6(1) of the Convention and awarded damages to the father; the challenge founded on Article 8 was rejected as manifestly ill-founded, whilst the challenge on the basis of Article 5 of Protocol No. 7 was held to be inadmissible.

Issues Relating to Return

The Court ruled unanimously that there had neither been a breach of Article 8 (right to family life) nor Art 6(1) (right to a fair trial) in the manner in which the Polish authorities had processed and sought to enforce the order providing for the return of the abducted child to her State of habitual residence.

Article 15 Decision or Determination | Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, refusal of Article 15 declaration confirmed

Removal and Retention - Arts 3 and 12 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Appeal allowed, return refused

Procedural Matters

Removal wrongful and return ordered. However, the subsequent concealment of the child for eight years made enforcement of the original return order impossible.

Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Return ordered with regards to the two younger children subject to undertakings; the removal was wrongful and the standard required under Article 13(1)(b) of the Convention to indicate that the children would face a grave risk of harm had not been met. Application dismissed with regard to the oldest child.