Where a Child has Been Abducted Internationally to the U.S.

Where a child has been abducted internationally to the U.S. it is important that you find a lawyer  in the U.S. to assist you as soon as possible.

A fundamental purpose of the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction is to protect children from abduction to foreign states. There are presently approximately 73 countries or territories who are treaty partners with the U.S.  The Hague Convention is civil rather than criminal in nature.

U.S. laws like the Uniform Child Custody and Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act and the Uniform Child Abduction Prevention Act may offer alternative remedies or apply even where the Convention does not.  For instance the Uniform Child Custody and Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act may apply to a child over the age of 16.  Similarly there are circumstances where the Convention may apply but the Uniform Child Custody and Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act or other U.S. laws do not.

The determination of which legal mechanisms apply and should be used for the return of an abducted child is case specific and should be made as soon as possible with the assistance of an attorney based upon the facts of the case.

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