§9003 — Title 22 Foreign Relations and Intercourse | U.S. Code

Summary

State and U.S. district courts both have power to hear cases under the Convention. Anyone who wants a child returned or wants help arranging visitation can start a civil case by filing a petition in a court that can act where the child is when the petition is filed. People involved must be given notice like in other interstate custody cases. The court must decide the case using the Convention’s rules. The person asking for relief must prove the main facts by a preponderance of the evidence. If someone opposes returning the child, they must prove certain defenses: those in articles 13(b) or 20 by clear and convincing evidence, and those in articles 12 or 13 by a preponderance. For this law, “authorities” means courts and relevant government agencies; “wrongful removal or retention” can include taking a child before any custody order exists; and “commencement of proceedings” for a child in the U.S. means filing the petition. Courts must give full faith and credit to other courts’ orders to return or not return a child, and the Convention’s remedies are additional to other legal options.

Title 22, §9003

Foreign Relations and Intercourse — Source: USLM XML via OLRC

(a)The courts of the States and the United States district courts shall have concurrent original jurisdiction of actions arising under the Convention.

(b)Any person seeking to initiate judicial proceedings under the Convention for the return of a child or for arrangements for organizing or securing the effective exercise of rights of access to a child may do so by commencing a civil action by filing a petition for the relief sought in any court which has jurisdiction of such action and which is authorized to exercise its jurisdiction in the place where the child is located at the time the petition is filed.

(c)Notice of an action brought under subsection (b) shall be given in accordance with the applicable law governing notice in interstate child custody proceedings.

(d)The court in which an action is brought under subsection (b) shall decide the case in accordance with the Convention.

(e)(1)A petitioner in an action brought under subsection (b) shall establish by a preponderance of the evidence—

(A)in the case of an action for the return of a child, that the child has been wrongfully removed or retained within the meaning of the Convention; and

(B)in the case of an action for arrangements for organizing or securing the effective exercise of rights of access, that the petitioner has such rights.

(2)In the case of an action for the return of a child, a respondent who opposes the return of the child has the burden of establishing—

(A)by clear and convincing evidence that one of the exceptions set forth in article 13b or 20 of the Convention applies; and

(B)by a preponderance of the evidence that any other exception set forth in article 12 or 13 of the Convention applies.

(f)For purposes of any action brought under this chapter—

(1)the term “authorities”, as used in article 15 of the Convention to refer to the authorities of the state of the habitual residence of a child, includes courts and appropriate government agencies;

(2)the terms “wrongful removal or retention” and “wrongfully removed or retained”, as used in the Convention, include a removal or retention of a child before the entry of a custody order regarding that child; and

(3)the term “commencement of proceedings”, as used in article 12 of the Convention, means, with respect to the return of a child located in the United States, the filing of a petition in accordance with subsection (b) of this section.

(g)Full faith and credit shall be accorded by the courts of the States and the courts of the United States to the judgment of any other such court ordering or denying the return of a child, pursuant to the Convention, in an action brought under this chapter.

(h)The remedies established by the Convention and this chapter shall be in addition to remedies available under other laws or international agreements.

Notes & Related Subsidiaries

Editorial Notes

References in Text

This chapter, referred to in subsecs. (f) to (h), was in the original “this Act” meaning Pub. L. 100–300, Apr. 29, 1988, 102 Stat. 437, which is classified principally to this chapter. For complete classification of this Act to the Code, see

Short Title

note under section 9001 of this title and Tables. Codification Section was formerly classified to section 11603 of Title 42, The Public Health and Welfare.

§9003 Judicial Remedies