If your child has been taken or kept in another country without your consent from your home country (habitual residence), you must act immediately to protect your rights. A common scenario is when one parent takes the child out of their home country without the consent of the other parent to start a new life in another country. Another common scenario involves one parent traveling abroad with the child with the other parent's consent and then refusing to return as planned. In either case, prompt action is crucial.

To enforce your rights, you must follow a procedure under the so-called Hague Convention initiate, an international treaty governing cross-border child abductions. The Hague Convention provides for an expedited judicial proceeding in which the court merely decides whether the child should be returned to their country of origin (habitual residence) or allowed to remain in the US.

Once this decision is made, all usual custody, visitation, and other family law matters will be heard in the child's home country's courts and not in the U.S. The Hague Convention ensures that only one competent court may decide custody issues involving a child and prevents one parent from attempting to „forum shop“ for a more favorable court to obtain custody orders that contradict those of the child's home country.

Due to the limited scope of proceedings under the Hague Convention, the competent court can conduct them swiftly up to the main hearing. In accordance with the provisions of the Hague Convention, proceedings can be concluded from the filing of the application to the main hearing before the court in as little as six weeks.

There are few objections to an application under the Hague Convention for the return of a child. These objections are:

• The parent who remained did not actually exercise their parental rights at the time of custody.
• The parent left behind consented to or approved of the child's removal or retention.
• More than a year has passed since the child was taken or withheld, and the child has settled in well in their surroundings.
• The child is mature enough to consciously object to the return.
• If the court orders the immediate return to the usual place of residence, there is a significant danger to the child.
• The return of the child would expose the child to the violation of fundamental human rights and freedoms.

These defense strategies concern a complex and evolving area of law that often requires research into the laws of foreign jurisdictions as well as U.S. federal and state laws.

The team specializing in the Hague Convention Urban Thier & Federer, PA is not not only experienced but also a leader in this field. The senior lawyer PPatricia M. Lee has over 30 years of experience in this area of law. She was the lead attorney in Hague Convention cases involving children who were taken from or brought to Germany, Belgium, Austria, Italy, the United Kingdom, the Czech Republic, Spain, Mexico, Brazil, Peru, Argentina, the United States of America, and other countries.

An example of this experience and leadership role is the case of RG v. HG in the U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Florida. Attorneys Patricia M. Lee and John L. Urban represented her, the mother of two children who had moved from Germany to Florida and wanted to stay there permanently. The father, who lived in Germany, initiated proceedings under the Hague Convention to obtain the return of the children to Germany.

The judge of the competent federal district court conducted extensive evidentiary proceedings and determined that the United States was now the habitual residence of the children. The father subsequently appealed. The three appellate court judges assigned to the case conducted expedited proceedings and ultimately issued a 17-page ruling that affirmed the decision of the trial court and clarified aspects of the application of the Hague Convention.

Another example of this experience and leadership is the case of TS v. YM, before the Eighth Judicial Circuit Court in Florida. Attorney Lee represented the father of two children who had lived at times with their mother in Mexico and intermittently with their father in the U.S. After an extensive trial court proceeding, the court decided the children should remain with the father as the U.S. was currently their home state. The mother appealed, and the court then engaged in an expedited appellate proceeding. The three-judge panel of the appellate court unanimously affirmed the trial court’s decision.

Whether your child has been removed from or is being held in your home country, whether you have been served with a Hague Convention petition, or whether you are otherwise involved in a case related to the Hague Convention, the experienced attorneys at Urban Thier & Federer, P.A. can assist you. To maximize your chances of success, it is essential that you act without delay.