It’s common for people to want to return to their native country when they are dealing with a major life even such as divorce, or even just as they get older and want to put down roots. However, as seen in the ongoing legal issues actress Kelly Rutherford and ex-husband Daniel Giersch have been enduring over the last few years, this can create complications for child custody cases.
Over the years, there have been multiple allegations of parental alienation, and Rutherford has been very vocal about wanting the children to be returned to the United States. She claims that the court order that sent the children to Monaco after their divorce in 2008 was to be a temporary solution until Giersch got the issues with his visa resolved.
There were several court proceedings related to the case over the course of this summer that determined that no U.S. state court could claim jurisdiction over the case, meaning Rutherford would have to deal with the Monaco courts, which granted Giersch sole custody earlier this year. Rutherford attempted to refuse to return the children to Monaco based on the argument that if no U.S. court had jurisdiction, no U.S. court could force her to send the children back.
This did not work, however, and the actress was required to appear in court with the children so that they could be turned over to their paternal grandmother who flew with the children back to Monaco. The case is set to be heard again in Monaco on Sept. 3 and while it’s unclear what Rutherford’s next move may be, she will likely need legal counsel experienced in dealing with international custody issues.
Source: New York Daily News, “Kelly Rutherford talks to Robin Roberts about latest in ongoing custody battle,” Jacqueline Cutler, Aug. 14, 2015
