The Convention decided that there shall be standards to define the Wrongful Retention or Removal of a child. Under the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction the following are the broad stroke definitions of what is considered to be Wrongful Retention or Wrongful Removal:

Article 3

The removal or the retention of a child is to be considered wrongful where – 

a) it is in breach of rights of custody attributed to a person, an institution or any other body, either  jointly or alone, under the law of the State  in which the child was habitually resident  immediately before the removal or retention; and

 

b) at the time of removal or retention those rights were actually exercised, either jointly or alone,  or would have been so exercised but for the removal or retention.  The rights of custody mentioned in sub-paragraph a) above, may arise in particular by operation of law or by reason of a judicial or administrative decision, or by reason of an agreement having legal effect under the law of that State. 

So when a court order has been issued or if the parents were sharing custody and one parent refuses to share the child’s custodial time, or leaves the country, the “left behind parent” needs to act to protect their interests and rights. The best way to do that is to locate lawyers ( attorneys ) who are skilled and experienced with the intricacies of the Hague Convention of International Child Abduction. In California, we have represented clients from Los Angeles County to Nevada County in Northern California and are qualified to represent clients throughout the state of California.