PIL instrument(s)

Case number and/or case name

A v D [2014] EWHC 2731 (Fam)

Details of the court

England and Wales, First Instance

Articles referred to by the court

Date of the judgement

31 July 2014

Appeal history

CJEU's case law cited by the court

Summary

The care proceedings were in respect of a child, E, who was born in England in December 2011. The mother was a Polish citizen; the father was an English national. The mother registered the child in her own name only. The father did not have parental responsibility. The parental responsibility proceedings were first initiated by the father on 16th April 2012. He also sought an order preventing the mother from removing the child out of England. The mother was planning to go and spend some of the summer in Poland. She gave oral evidence and committed to return the child on 16th July 2012. However, she did not do so. Indeed, the mother initiated parental responsibility proceedings in Poland. The father made an application for a summary return of the child to England. The application was refused by the Polish court, holding that the father had no “rights of custody”. On 30th April 2014, an application for the child’s return was made before the English courts. The English court established jurisdiction under Article 12(3). But, it was held that there was a need for considering whether a transfer request should be made under Article 15(3). On 9th December 2014, the English court decided to make a transfer request to the Polish courts. (See A v D, ED (by his children’s guardian) [2014] EWHC 3851 (Fam).)