The Hague Conference's (HCCH) Council on General Affairs and Policy (the organization's governing body) holds an annual meeting, typically in March, to set forth an agenda for the organization's work over the coming year. The meeting is attended by representatives of Member States. Prior … Read More about HCCH Update: Annual Council Meeting
HCCH Update: Happy 40th to the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention
Today marks an auspicious day in history. It is the 40th anniversary of the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention. This highly successful treaty serves to promptly return children to their habitual residence after they are wrongfully removed or retained in another treaty partner … Read More about HCCH Update: Happy 40th to the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention
Case Update (2020): Rizvi v. MD DSS; Hague Convention suit must be brought where the child sits
Dr. Hil Rizvi appeals a trial court order dismissing his complaint against a Massachusetts social service agency, a Maryland social service agency, and two separate Swiss governmental agencies. The Third Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal on September 25, 2020. Rizvi is the father of … Read More about Case Update (2020): Rizvi v. MD DSS; Hague Convention suit must be brought where the child sits
Case Update (2020): Biagioli Da Silva v. Vieira; Hague Abduction Convention – Right of Custody
The case of Biagioli Da Silva et. al. v. Vieira is, in most respects, a run-of-the-mill Hague Abduction return proceeding. The parents and children were all Brazilian nationals. The parents separated, divorced, and shared custody in Brazil. The Father, Biagioli Da Silva, ran into … Read More about Case Update (2020): Biagioli Da Silva v. Vieira; Hague Abduction Convention – Right of Custody
Case Update (2020): Valles Rubio v. Veintimilla Castro; Grave Risk in Hague Abduction Case, and ameliorative measures
On May 11, 2020, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the return of a minor child to Ecuador in the case of Valles Rubio v. Veintimilla Castro, 813 Fed.Appx. 619 (2020). The key issue on appeal revolved around the grave risk of harm to the minor child if returned to Ecuador, and … Read More about Case Update (2020): Valles Rubio v. Veintimilla Castro; Grave Risk in Hague Abduction Case, and ameliorative measures
Case Update (2020): Smith v. Smith; Application of Monasky “Totality of the Circumstances” Habitual Residence Test
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit recently had the opportunity to apply the Monasky v. Taglieri habitual residence test in the case of Smith v. Smith. The parents and children, all U.S. citizens, were residing in Argentina, when the mother traveled with the children to Texas … Read More about Case Update (2020): Smith v. Smith; Application of Monasky “Totality of the Circumstances” Habitual Residence Test
Case Update (2020): Da Silva v. De Aredes; Hague Abduction Convention, Return Orders cannot resolve custody
Just before I started this blog, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit issued an opinion in the case of Da Silva v. De Aredes (953 F.3d 67 (March 13, 2020)). There were a few issues that the Respondent Mother (de Aredes) argued on appeal, but ultimately the court affirmed the U.S. … Read More about Case Update (2020): Da Silva v. De Aredes; Hague Abduction Convention, Return Orders cannot resolve custody
Case Update (2020): Radu v. Shon; Hague Abduction Convention and the Grave Risk of Harm
On September 16, 2020, the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona returned the parties' children to their habitual residence of Germany. In the case of Radu v. Shon, the Respondent Mother (Shon) conceded that her removal of the children from Germany in June 2019 was wrongful. … Read More about Case Update (2020): Radu v. Shon; Hague Abduction Convention and the Grave Risk of Harm
Case Update (2020): Trott v. Trott; Hague Abduction Convention, comity to a Hague order from foreign jurisdiction
In the case of Trott v. Trott, the Eastern District of New York granted a father's petition to have his two daughters returned to Bermuda.The parties are parents to two daughters. Their eldest child is not the father's biological daughter, but was raised as his daughter. The youngest is … Read More about Case Update (2020): Trott v. Trott; Hague Abduction Convention, comity to a Hague order from foreign jurisdiction
Case Update (2020): Farr v. Kendrick; application of habitual residence using the Monasky standard
On August 20, 2020, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the U.S. District Court for the District of Arizona in Farr v. Kendrick, which had denied Mr. Farr's petition to have his children returned to Mexico using the Hague Abduction Convention.The district court concluded that the United States, not … Read More about Case Update (2020): Farr v. Kendrick; application of habitual residence using the Monasky standard
Case Update (2020): Zaoral v. Meza; Hague Abduction Convention, one year and now settled
On August 26, 2020, in the case of Zaoral v. Meza, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas ordered the return of a 15-year-old child to Venezuela. The parties' youngest child, age 15 at the time of the trial, was the subject of a Venezuelan custody order that gave both parents … Read More about Case Update (2020): Zaoral v. Meza; Hague Abduction Convention, one year and now settled
Case Update (2020): Castro v. Hernandez Renteria; Date of Wrongful Removal, One Year and Now Settled under the Hague Abduction Convention
On August 19, 2020, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court's refusal to return a minor child to Mexico in the case of Castro v. Hernandez Renteria on the basis that the underlying petition for return was filed more than one year after the child's wrongful removal/retention, and … Read More about Case Update (2020): Castro v. Hernandez Renteria; Date of Wrongful Removal, One Year and Now Settled under the Hague Abduction Convention