Court Report: Child abduction
Monday, March 21, 2011
Case Name: O (Children); Case Number: [2011] EWCA Civ 128; Judge: Lord Justice Wilson, Lord Justice Pitchford and Lady Justice Black; Location: Court of Appeal
This case concerned a dispute between a mother and father as to where their two daughters, aged five and seven, should live. The mother and father originated from Nigeria and had met in the US.
They had set up a life in the US and the children were born there. In 2009, the mother went with the children to Nigeria on holiday. During her visit, she decided that she could no longer live with the father and did not return to the US. A child abduction case was opened.
In 2010, the mother came to the UK for a holiday. On hearing this, the father made an application under the Hague Convention and sought the return of the children to the US. The trial judge found that the children were settled in Nigeria, but decided to exercise his discretion and order that the children return to the US. The mother appealed to the Court of Appeal.
Appeal upheld
The court upheld her appeal, holding that the trial judge had erred in giving too much consideration to Hague Convention policy considerations rather than considering the individual needs of the children. The court held that the children should remain in Nigeria.
In coming to this decision, the court took into account the fact that the children were settled in Nigeria and viewed it as their home.
