U.S. Circuits Split on the Implementation of 1980 Hague Child Convention

The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit has ruled earlier this week in Ozaltin v. Ozaltin that the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction affords a private right of action to parents who may seek to enforce their right of access in U.S. federal courts.

The Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit had ruled the opposite in 2006 in Cantor v. Cohen. Rights afforded by the Convention, the Court ruled, could only be vindicated in the United States by applying to the U.S. State Department.

A useful summary is available here.

H/T: Opiniojuris.