Close Menu
    Latest Category
    • Finance
    • Tech
    • EU Law
    • Energy
    • About
    • Contact
    EUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politicsEUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politics
    Login
    • EU News
    • Focus
    • Guides
    • Press
    • Jobs
    • Events
    • Directory
    EUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politicsEUbusiness.com | EU news, business and politics
    Home » Cross-border custody dependent on national law, says EU Court

    Cross-border custody dependent on national law, says EU Court

    npsBy nps18 October 2010Updated:30 July 2024 EU Law No Comments3 Mins Read
    — Filed under: Custody EU Law
    Share
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Email

    By Leo Gasteen

    The European Court of Justice has ruled that the removal of a child by a parent to another Member State is wrongful only if it is in breach of custody rights granted by national law, following the judgement in Case C-400/10J. McB. v L. E.

    The ruling comes after an Irish national bought an appeal before the Supreme Court ( Ireland), which was then referred to the Court of Justice, referring to the regulation 2201/2003 and its compatibility with Irish custodial law.

    Regulation 2201/2003, concerning jurisdiction and the recognition and enforcement of judgements in matrimonial matters and matters of parental responsibility, provides that the removal of a child is wrongful where it is in breach of ‘rights of custody acquired by judgement or by operation of law or by an agreement having legal effect under the law of the Member State where the child was habitually resident immediately before the removal’.

    Under Irish law, a natural father, who is not married to the mother, does not automatically have rights of custody. Such rights may be granted to him by an agreement entered into by the parents or by a court judgement. On the other hand, the mother automatically has such rights.

    In the light of Article 7 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the EU (‘the Charter’) concerning respect for private and family life, precludes a Member State from providing by its law that the acquisition of rights of custody by a child’s father, where he is not married to the child’s mother, is dependent on his obtaining a judgement from a national court with jurisdiction awarding such rights of custody to him, on the basis of which the removal of the child by its mother may be considered wrongful.

    Background

    Mr McB., an Irish national, and Ms E., of British nationality, an unmarried couple, lived together for more than 10 years and, from November 2008, lived with their three children, born in 2000, 2002 and 2007, in Ireland.

    After the couple’s relationship deteriorated, the mother left the family home with the children on 11 July 2009 to live in a women’s refuge. On 25 July, she took a flight to England, taking with her the three children. In the interim, on 15 July 2009, the father took steps to bring proceedings before an Irish court, in order to obtain rights of custody in respect of his three children. However, since his application had not been served on the mother before her departure, the action had not been validly brought in accordance with Irish procedural law, and the Irish court had therefore not been able to comply.

    In November 2009 Mr McB. sought from the appropriate English court an order for the return of his children to Ireland. That court requested that he obtain a decision from the Irish authorities declaring that the removal of the children was wrongful. Accordingly, in December 2009 Mr McB. made an application to the High Court (Ireland) for such a decision. In April 2010, that application was dismissed on the ground that the father had no rights of custody in respect of the children on the date of their removal, and consequently that removal was not ‘wrongful’.

    European Court of Justice-  Justice and Application – Full Text

    Add A Comment
    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    You must be logged in to post a comment.

    nps
    • Website

    Related Content

    EU deal on patent rules exception to ensure supply of critical products

    Legal Officer Competition – Competition and State Aid Directorate, EFTA Surveillance Authority, ESA

    Sponsor: EFTA Surveillance Authority (ESA)11 April 2025
    Kaja Kallas - Photo © European Union 202

    Europe lays foundations for tribunal to hold Russia to account for war against Ukraine

    FIEC logo

    Policy Officer for the Economic and Legal Affairs Commission, European Construction Industry Federation (FIEC)

    Shopping - Photo by Pavel Danilyuk on Pexels

    New EU product liability rules enter into force

    Academy of European Law logo

    Lawyer / Course administrator in EU financial markets & European banking law

    LATEST EU NEWS
    Euro - ECB-Photo by Mika Baumeister on Unsplash

    Geopolitical tension and broader risk-off sentiment hit equity markets – Euro currency news daily

    13 June 2025

    Brussels to postpone market risk prudential requirements under Basel III by one more year

    12 June 2025
    Cyberattacks - Photo by Tima Miroshnichenko on Pexels

    EUR 145m calls to boost European cybersecurity for hospitals

    12 June 2025
    Detergents - Photo by Liliana Drew on Pexels

    EU Council and Parliament strike deal for safer detergents

    11 June 2025
    Cybersecurity - Image by Franz Bachinger from Pixabay

    EU adopts blueprint for dealing with European cyber crises

    6 June 2025

    Subscribe to EUbusiness Week

    Get the latest EU news

    CONTACT INFO

    • EUbusiness Ltd 117 High Street, Chesham Buckinghamshire, HP5 1DE United Kingdom
    • +44(0)20 8058 8232
    • service@eubusiness.com

    INFORMATION

    • About Us
    • Advertising
    • Contact Info

    Services

    • Privacy Policy
    • Terms
    • EU News

    SOCIAL MEDIA

    Facebook
    eubusiness.com © EUbusiness Ltd 2025

    Design and developed by : 

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.

    Sign In or Register

    Welcome Back!

    Login to your account below.

    Lost password?