ABSTRACT
Accordingly, when such a marriage (or unmarried relationship) with children breaks down, it is often in circumstances which cause such extreme reactions that litigation is the only recourse, since it is generally the case that it is only at that stage that it is discovered that neither party has considered (as they both might have done at the start of the relationship, and certainly before the birth of children) what would happen if their union foundered and one or other wanted to ‘go home’, particularly since in the case of the carer parent this would obviously include taking the children too, and it is now common for both parents to have parental responsibility whether they are married or not. The international child abduction charity, reunite , has had some success with their mediation initiative 1 but abductions remain widespread, in some cases in view of incorrect advice given to the abducting parent that returning to that parent’s original habitual residence and retaining the child there is entirely permissible; whereas of course it is not, especially if the other parent has parental responsibility and does not wish to lose contact with the child.
