Australia's embrace of the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention: How the judiciary's narrow interpretation of the 'grave risk of harm' exception harms abused taking mothers and their children

摘要

This thesis explored how Australian courts have dealt with a recent surge in international parental child abductions by primary carer mothers escaping domestic violence perpetrated by their children’s father. This area of the law is governed by the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention, implemented by Australia in 1986. A selection of reported cases decided between 2005 and 2015 where the “Grave Risk of Harm” defence was raised by the mother was analysed. The conclusion was that Australian courts generally apply the Convention narrowly to all cases, even domestic violence cases, and that this approach can adversely affect abused women and children.