35 F 1162/98-52, Familiengericht Frankfurt (Family Court) (Germany), 16 October 1998
Rights of Custody – Art. 3 The court held that while the father possessed joint rights of custody he could not establish that he was actually exercising those rights at the time of the child’s removal. The child lived with the mother in Florida following the parental separation. The court found that the father did […]
449/III/97/bufr/mour, Cour d’appel du canton de Berne
The application concerned a girl born in Taiwan to an American father and Taiwanese mother. She was 3 at the date of the alleged wrongful retention. The family initially lived in Taiwan, but prior to a relocation to the United States, the mother moved to Switzerland to live with a new partner, taking the child […]
Harkness v. Harkness, 227 Mich. App. 581, 577 N.W. 2d 116 (Mich. Ct. App. 1998)
The children, both girls, were 6 and 4 at the date of the alleged wrongful retention. They had lived in both Germany and the United States. The parents were married and had joint rights of custody. In July 1995 mother and children travelled to Michigan to stay with the paternal grandparents. The nature of the […]
V.L.K. 12. November 1997, 12. afd., B-2305-97
Consent – Art. 13(1)(a) The appeal court did not find that the father had agreed to the children staying permanently in Denmark. Rather the agreement entered into with the mother was designed to achieve an amicable solution to the dispute. By her actions the mother had breached that agreement and the court ordered the return […]
Panazatou v. Pantazatos, No. FA 960713571S (Conn. Super. Ct. Sept. 24, 1997)
The child, a girl, was 2 1/2 at the date of the alleged wrongful removal. She had lived in both Greece and the United States, although the majority of her life had been spent in the former State. The parents were married and had joint rights of custody. On 11 September 1996 the mother took […]
State Central Authority of Victoria v. Ardito, 29 October 1997, Family Court of Australia (Melbourne) [1997] FamCA 61
Grave Risk – Art. 13(1)(b) The court distinguished the instant case from previous case law on the basis that the mother had not deliberately refused to return to the United States. She had not endeavoured to create a defence of grave risk of psychological harm or an intolerable situation, she had consented to an order […]
CA Versailles, 11 septembre 1997, No de RG 1997-2604
L’a?n?e des enfants en cause ?tait n?e aux Etats-Unis d’Am?rique. Alors que les parents ?taient en instance de divorce, la m?re l’emmena unilat?ralement en France. La demande de retour du p?re fut rejet?e mais les parents se r?concili?rent et la m?re retourna vivre aux Etats-Unis d’Am?rique avec l’enfant aupr?s du p?re. Deux ans plus tard, […]
Re O. (Child Abduction: Re-Abduction) [1997] 2 FLR 712
The children, both girls, were 8 and 4 1/2 at the date of the original wrongful removal. The parents were married and both enjoyed custody rights. On 13 September 1996 the mother unilaterally removed the girls from their home in California and took them to Sweden, her State of origin. The father commenced return proceedings. […]
In the Marriage of G.R. and B.J. Colbourne, 30 April 1997, Full Court of the Family Court of Australia at Sydney [1997] FamCA 18, (1997) FLC 92-749, 21 Fam LR 621
The children, a boy and a girl were 14 1/2 and 11 1/3 at the date of the alleged wrongful removal. They had lived in Australia all of their lives. The parents were separated. The mother had custody and the father access. On 17 December 1996 the mother took the children to the United States. […]
Krishna v. Krishna 1997 WL 195439 (N.D.Cal.)
Aims of the Convention – Preamble, Arts 1 and 2 The United States District Court for the Northern District of California cited the Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit in Friedrich, where it stated that “[t]he affirmative defences…offer an opportunity, in extraordinary cases, for a court in the country of flight to consider the […]