HR (Parallel Child Abduction and Asylum Proceedings), Re
[2024] EWHC 1626 (Fam)
Re K & S (Article 13(b))
21 July 2023
[2023] EWHC 1883 (Fam)
High Court
Mom says Dad abused her and wants to stay in the UK with the kids. Dad says it's not true and wants the kids back in the USA. The judge said Dad has to give Mom money, an apartment, and support so she can be safe, and then sent the kids back to the USA with Mom.
Key Facts
- •Father (Applicant) seeks summary return of two children (K, 4; S, 2) to Virginia, USA under the 1980 Hague Convention.
- •Mother (Respondent) opposes return, citing Article 13(b) – grave risk of physical or psychological harm or intolerable situation in the USA.
- •Children were habitually resident in the USA before being retained in the UK by the mother on March 2, 2023.
- •Mother alleges emotional and physical abuse (including rape), child neglect, and coercive control by the father in the USA.
- •Father denies all allegations of abuse and neglect, offering comprehensive protective measures to mitigate any potential risk upon return to the USA.
- •Expert psychological report supports mother's claim of anxiety, PTSD, and depression, but acknowledges that protective measures could alleviate anxieties.
Legal Principles
Article 13(b) of the 1980 Hague Convention has a high threshold and the burden of proof lies with the respondent.
Re A (Children) (Abduction: Article 13b) [2021] EWCA Civ 939; Re E (Children) (Abduction Custody Appeal) [2011] UKSC 27; Re S (Abduction: Article 13(b) Defence) [2012] 2 AC 257
The risk to the child must be 'grave' and the court must consider the future situation upon return, including available protective measures.
Re A, Re E, Re S
The court's role is not fact-finding but assessing the potential risk and the efficacy of protective measures in mitigating that risk.
Re C (Article 13(b)) [2021] EWCA Civ 1354
In cases of alleged domestic abuse, the court considers whether the alleged abuse creates a grave risk to the child and whether protective measures can sufficiently mitigate that risk.
Re E (Children)
The court considers the Domestic Abuse Act 2021 definition of domestic abuse in assessing the mother's allegations.
Domestic Abuse Act 2021
Even if the mother's anxieties are unreasonable, the court will still consider if they would create an intolerable situation for the child if the child is returned
Re S
Outcomes
Father's application for summary return of the children to the USA is granted.
While the mother's allegations of abuse, if true, would create a grave risk to the children's psychological wellbeing, the comprehensive protective measures offered by the father sufficiently mitigate that risk. The court finds that the mother's anxieties, while genuine, would not destabilise her parenting to the point of causing grave risk to the children.