Case Law Search

Procedural Matters

"Amparo" granted by the Constitutional Court which mandated the Court of Appeals to decide on the merits of the appeal.

Issues Relating to Return

Application dismissed

Application dismissed because ill-founded; the Czech authorities had not breached Article 8 of the ECHR.

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

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed. The removal was wrongful and the exceptions of the Convention inapplicable.

Procedural Matters

Return ordered

Wrongful retention of a 1-year-old boy – Costa Rican – unmarried parents – Nicaraguan father – Dominican mother – Joint custody rights – The boy lived in Costa Rica until January 2018 – The return request was filed before a Nicaraguan court in January 2019 – Return ordered – Main issues: procedural matters – The parents agreed that the child would return to Costa Rica in the company of his father once the latter was assured that he would not be criminally sanctioned for child abduction.

Human Rights - Art. 20

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed and return ordered; Article 20 of the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention was not engaged by the facts of the case.

Habitual Residence - Art. 3 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b) | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed and return ordered; the child was habitually resident in Sweden at the time of the retention and the standard required under Art. 13(1)(b) of the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention to establish a grave risk of harm had not been met.

Aims of the Convention - Preamble, Arts 1 and 2 | Habitual Residence - Art. 3 | Acquiescence - Art. 13(1)(a) | Legal Doctrine

Appeal dismissed, return ordered

Appeal dismissed, return upheld. The removal was wrongful and none of the exceptions raised was applicable.

Objections of the Child to a Return - Art. 13(2) | Rights of Access - Art. 21

Application allowed and independent children's lawyer appointed.

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

Article 15 declaration refused

Article 15 declaration: the removal of the child was not wrongful within the meaning of Article 3 as the father did not have rights of custody on the relevant date.

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

Legal challenge dismissed and decision refusing to return the child to Germany confirmed. The removal had been wrongful but Article 13(1)(b) had been proved to the standard required under the Convention.

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

Appeal dismissed and return of older sibling ordered; his removal had been wrongful and the Article 13(1)(b) exception had not been established.

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

Return refused

Return refused. 

Habitual Residence - Art. 3

Appeal allowed, return ordered

Appeal allowed, return ordered. 

Rights of Custody - Art. 3

Application dismissed

Application dismissed; the removal of the child was not wrongful as it was not in breach of any legally recognised right of custody.

Rights of Custody - Art. 3

Appeal dismissed, application dismissed

Appeal dismissed and application dismissed; the grandparents did not hold rights of custody at the time of the removal of the child.

Habitual Residence - Art. 3 | Procedural Matters

Appeal dismissed, return refused

Appeal dismissed; the child had not had a habitual residence in Greece.

Undertakings

Appeal dismissed, return ordered subject to undertakings

Appeal dismissed and return ordered, subject to undertakings.

Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b) | Settlement of the Child - Art. 12(2)

Return refused

Return refused. The children were at grave risk of harm if they returned to Spain and were settled in the USA. 

Habitual Residence - Art. 3 | Removal and Retention - Arts 3 and 12 | Rights of Custody - Art. 3 | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b)

Return refused

Application denied and return refused; although the retention was wrongful, Article 13(1)(b) had been proved to the standard required under the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention.

Habitual Residence - Art. 3 | Consent - Art. 13(1)(a) | Grave Risk - Art. 13(1)(b) | Undertakings

Return refused

2 children (twins) wrongfully removed at age 3 - Nationals of Canada and the United States of America - Married parents - Father national of the United States of America - Mother national of Canada - Joint custody - Children lived in the United States of America until October 2013 - Application for return filed with the Central Authority of Manitoba on February 2014 - Return refused - Main issues: consent to removal, Art 13(1) (b) grave risk exception to return, undertakings - Consent and acquiescence, within the meaning of Art. 13(1)(a), must be given “their plain, ordinary meaning”, and evidence to establish consent or acquiescence must be “clear and cogent” - The provision by one parent of time-limited travel consent is insufficient to prove that the parent consented to the removal or retention - Exceptionally, return may be refused under Art. 13(1)(b) if there is compelling evidence of severe long-standing and escalating physical and psychological harm inflicted on the taking parent and the children