A Colorado man who has not had any communication with his daughters in seven months is one step closer to retrieving them from their mother. Official reports show that the man’s child custody problems relate to international abduction. The girls’ mother spirited them away to Argentina more than three years ago in violation of a child custody court order. Those two girls are just a couple of the more than 1,000 children who are abducted by parents to a foreign country each year.
The good news: The Argentinian Supreme Court has decided in favor of the man, so he won the custody case. He is only waiting on an order of return from the U.S. government. His girls should be returned to him relatively quickly.
The man said that his issues began in 2010, when he was divorcing his wife. The woman wanted to move to Buenos Aires; she is an Argentinian native. After a prolonged custody battle, a judge in Colorado ruled that the man should retain primary child custody over his children. That is when the woman took off for Argentina. She has been living there with her children ever since that time.
After the abduction, the man was required to file an application through officials associated with the Hague child abduction treaty. This treaty protects children from illegal international abduction by a parent. Children should be returned within eight weeks after a Hague application is filed, but that is not always the case. Argentinian courts allow a number of appeals options, which the woman has pursued in earnest.
Parents who are concerned about the possibility of international child abduction — or who are already facing the stark reality of a parental kidnapping — may be entitled to legal relief. A family attorney in Colorado may provide additional information for victims of such international incidents. Parents have the right to fair parenting time that is in the best interests of the child.
Source: KTVQ, “Colorado dad one step closer in fight against ex-wife for daughters in Argentina” CNN, Mar. 31, 2014
