The Court reviewed the questions which need to be explored when considering a defence of Child’s Objections to a claim under the Act for their return to a home country. It shouls ask:
(1) Are the objections to return made out? In this connection is the child objecting to being returned to the country of habitual residence, as opposed simply to expressing a preference for staying with the abducting parent?
(2) Has the child reached an age and degree of maturity at which it is appropriate to take account of his views?
(3) In this connection have those views been shaped or coloured by undue influence or pressure directly or indirectly exerted by the abducting parent to an extent which requires such views to be disregarded or discounted?
(4) If, and to the extent that, it is appropriate to take account of the child’s objections, in exercising the Court’s discretion whether or not to order return, what weight should be placed on those objections in the light of any countervailing factors, and in particular the philosophy of the Convention or what have been called the ‘Convention considerations’. These are that both the deterrence of abductors and the welfare interests of children are generally best served by the making of an order for prompt return to the requesting state for consideration of the position by the appropriate home court; they also include comity and respect for the judicial processes of the requesting state, as well as welfare considerations directed to the position of the child in question.
Citations:
[2007] EWCA Civ 260, [2007] 2 FLR 72
Links:
Jurisdiction:
England and Wales
Cited by:
Cited – AF v M B-F FD 22-Feb-2008
The father sought the return of the two children to Poland after they had been brought to England by the mother. She said that she had come to seek work as a dentist, and had been unable to support the family in Poland. She said that her Polish . .
Lists of cited by and citing cases may be incomplete.
Children, International
Updated: 22 November 2022; Ref: scu.253547