World news story

Family Law symposium brings together international experts

An international Family Law symposium focusing on inter-country child removal issues will be held at India International Centre in Delhi Monday 13 May.

From:
British High Commission New Delhi
Published
10 May 2013
This was published under the 2010 to 2015 Conservative and Liberal Democrat coalition government

Participants include British Deputy High Commissioner to India Mr Julian Evans; Head of International Family Justice for England and Wales Lord Justice Mathew Thorpe; Chief Justice of the Family Court of Australia Diana Bryant; Former Attorney General of India Mr Soli Sorabjee and Justice Vikramjit Sen, Supreme Court of India.

The distinguished panel will bring together experts from a wide range of institutions such as Office of Children’s Issues, US State Department; Hague Permanent Bureau; National Commission for the Protection of Child Rights; National Judicial Academy; National Commission for Protection of Child Rights; Reunite International; National Law School of India and senior practitioners.

Further information:

  1. The first legal text book on surrogacy “Surrogacy in India: A Law in the Making” by Anil & Ranjit Malhotra, Chandigarh-based international lawyers, will be launched at the symposium.

  2. Given increased international mobility, there has been a steady rise in cross-border parental child removal cases. Last year India was second* only to Pakistan as a destination for children removed from the UK by one parent against the wishes of the other.

  3. At present there is no international treaty between India and the rest of the world to provide a mechanism for swift resolution of child removal cases. Parents often have to initiate court cases in both countries which can be an expensive and lengthy process.

  4. The 1980 Hague Convention is an agreement between 89 countries** which aims to return the abducted child to the country he/she normally lives in so that custody issues can be decided by the courts of that country.

  5. For further detail please email Upendra Singh or call on 9871423233.

(*Source: FCO figure based on the number of cases in which consular assistance was offered)

(** Source: The World Organisation for Cross Border Co-operation in Civil and Commercial matters)

Marcus Winsley
Director, Press and Communications,
British High Commission,
Chanakyapuri,
New Delhi 110021
Telephone: 44192100
Fax: 24192411

email: Kitty.Tawakley@fco.gov.uk; Follow on Twitter: @UKinIndia

Published 10 May 2013