Session 03.3 Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in Light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Tracks
Track 3: Room LG17
| Monday, July 28, 2025 |
| 2:00 PM - 3:30 PM |
| LG17 |
Overview
Panel Session
Chair: Philippe Lortie, Hague Conference On Private International Law, The Netherlands
Panellists:
- Dr Adrienne Barnett, Brunel University, UK
- Dr Michelle Fernando, University of South Australia
- Professor Merle Weiner, University of Oregon, USA
- Associate Professor Miranda Kaye, UTS, Australia
- Ms Jessica Raffal, ISS, Australia
Commentary:
The Hon Justice Suzanne Christie, FCFCOA – Div 1, Australia
Details
Overview
Almost 50 years after the promulgation of the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention (HAC), Special Rapporteur Pérez Vera acknowledged that “the fundamental element of change that was not taken into account was gender-based violence”. This international panel considers the HAC and its intersection with domestic violence - an unanticipated problem and an unfortunate social reality. All the panellists participated in the 2024 Forum on Domestic Violence and the Hague Abduction Convention held by the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) in South Africa. There the Secretary General of the HCCH acknowledged the HCCH’s reputational concerns about the Convention and opined that, when applied correctly, the Convention can be implemented justly for victims of domestic violence. The panel broadly investigates possible solutions to the challenging tension between the Convention’s primary goal of ensuring the swift return of children to their country of habitual residence and the urgent need to protect women and children from domestic and family violence.
Almost 50 years after the promulgation of the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention (HAC), Special Rapporteur Pérez Vera acknowledged that “the fundamental element of change that was not taken into account was gender-based violence”. This international panel considers the HAC and its intersection with domestic violence - an unanticipated problem and an unfortunate social reality. All the panellists participated in the 2024 Forum on Domestic Violence and the Hague Abduction Convention held by the Hague Conference on Private International Law (HCCH) in South Africa. There the Secretary General of the HCCH acknowledged the HCCH’s reputational concerns about the Convention and opined that, when applied correctly, the Convention can be implemented justly for victims of domestic violence. The panel broadly investigates possible solutions to the challenging tension between the Convention’s primary goal of ensuring the swift return of children to their country of habitual residence and the urgent need to protect women and children from domestic and family violence.
Speaker
Dr Adrienne Barnett
Reader In Law
Brunel University Of London
Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Abstract
Adrienne Barnett will discuss her recent analysis of three years of Hague Convention judgments in England and Wales, which was supported by a grant from Brunel University’s Global Lives Research Centre. All cases decided under the Hague Convention from January 2020 to December 2022 were identified and analysed thematically. This presentation will focus on the demographic characteristics of the cases, the basis for and outcomes of the Article 13(b) defence where this was pleaded, the extent to which the Guide to Good Practice was referred to, the influence of ‘protective measures’ on the outcomes of the cases, and factors relevant to the exercise of the court’s discretion in cases where the Article 13(b) defence succeeded. It will consider the relevance of the European Convention on Human Rights and the Istanbul Convention to Hague Convention cases that involve domestic violence and abuse and the extent to which courts do and should factor in states’ obligations under those Conventions when deciding Hague Convention cases.
Biography
Adrienne Barnett is a Reader in Law at Brunel University London. Dr Barnett practised as a barrister for over 30 years, specialising in Family Law before moving into full time academia in January 2014. Her specialist area of research for the past 27 years has been domestic abuse and family court proceedings, including Hague Convention cases and, since 2017, parental alienation. She is a member of the Advisory Group of Rights of Women, the UK lead on the International Strategy Group of Hague Mothers, a co-director of Right to Equality’s campaign to end the presumption of contact, and a trustee of Project Lighthouse, which supports mothers who have suffered child removal. She is currently undertaking a study of domestic abuse and parental alienation in family court proceedings funded by the BA/Leverhulme Small Projects Scheme, and an analytical study of recent England and Wales Hague Convention judgments.
Dr Michelle Fernando
Associate Professor in Law
University of South Australia
Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Abstract
Michelle Fernando will consider the importance of the child’s voice in cases of domestic violence and, in particular, the relationship between the HAC and the UN Convention on the Rights of the Child. Her presentation examines the importance of hearing from children when an exception to mandatory return is raised, and particularly when it relates to the child’s safety. Dr Fernando argues for consistent responses to the issue of children’s voices and family violence to ensure that the rights of children who are subject to the Convention are adequately protected.
Biography
Michelle Fernando is an Associate Professor at the University of South Australia where she specialises in Family Law. She researches how children are heard in family law matters, including in Hague International Child Abduction cases. In 2023 Michelle gave evidence to the Senate Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs on how proposed amendments to the Family Law Act impacted the rights and interests of children. Her research and advocacy were instrumental in changing the Australian law and regulations around how the objections of abducted children to returning to their home country are considered.
Ms Miranda Kaye
Associate Professor Of Law
University Of Technology Sydney
Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Abstract
Miranda Kaye and Jessica Raffal will evaluate suggested and implemented “tweaks” to the HAC that try to improve the Convention in these cases. They will particularly focus on the Australian Family Law (Child Abduction Convention) Amendment (Family Violence) Regulations 2022 which purport to provide additional safeguards to parents and children fleeing family and domestic violence when Australian courts consider cases brought under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and the Australian International Child Abduction Respondents Scheme which provides funding to eligible parents who are responding to an application under the Convention for the return of a child.
Biography
Miranda Kaye is an Associate Professor whose area of expertise lies in family law. Her research is interdisciplinary, drawing on socio-legal research methods to investigate real world impacts of family law principles and procedures. Miranda has conducted empirical research over more than 20 years on a wide range of family law issues including children’s representation in family law, the effects of self-representation in family law matters involving allegations of family violence, pre-nuptial agreements and advocacy for women who are victims in domestic and family violence matters in defended hearings.
Ms Jessica Raffal
Managing Lawyer
International Social Service Australia
Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘new social realities’: how the Hague Conference should respond to domestic violence and abuse
Biography
Jessica leads the legal team specialising in international family law and the 1980 Hague Convention. Jessica joined ISS Australia in 2021 after extensive experience within the community legal sector, including with Women’s Legal Service NSW where she specialised in domestic violence and family law. Prior to practising law in Australia, Jessica worked in human rights monitoring in south-east and central Asia, focussing on women’s and children’s rights. This background ignited her passion for advocating for vulnerable populations and ensuring that individuals navigating complex legal systems receive the support and advocacy they need. It also cemented her view that domestic violence is an urgent global public health and human rights threat. Jessica has a deep commitment to justice, empowerment and legal excellence and strives to ensure that the work of ISS Australia reflects those values.
Professor Merle Weiner
Professor
University Of Oregon
Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Abstract
Merle Weiner will propose a new treaty to fix the “domestic violence problem” that plagues the Hague Abduction Convention. She will suggest that it is time to advance a new multilateral treaty in the event the “tweaks” are not enough or are not forthcoming. Her paper argues that a new international instrument is a legally permissible and efficient method of solving the problem among like-minded countries, and compares the proposed solution to similar instruments that exist in the European Union and Latin America but that do not address domestic violence. The paper also recommends specific provisions for the new treaty.
Biography
Professor Weiner has written extensively about the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction and how it affects domestic violence victims who flee transnationally with their children for safety. Her work has been cited by the United States Court of Appeals for the First, Second, Sixth, Seventh, and Eleventh Circuits, as well as by numerous other courts. She has trained judges, lawyers and law professors on the topic, including through the auspices of the National Criminal Justice Training Center, the National Association of Women Judges, the ABA Commission on Domestic and Sexual Violence, the National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges, the Practicing Law Institute, and the Association of American Law Schools. In addition, she has advised domestic violence organizations filing amicus briefs in Hague Abduction Convention cases, including four out of the five cases before the U.S. Supreme Court.
Justice Suzanne Christie
Judge
Federal Circuit And Family Court Of Australia Division 1
Commentator on: Reinterpreting the 1980 Hague Abduction Convention in light of ‘New Social Realities’: How the Hague Conference Should Respond to Domestic Violence and Abuse
Biography
Admitted to practice as a Barrister in 2004 and appointed Senior Counsel in 2018, the Hon. Justice Christie came to the bench with a background in family law, and related matters in both State and Federal Courts, including in adoption and Appellate advocacy. Justice Christie was until recently one of the authors of Lexis Nexis Annotated Family Law Legislation and was the contributing author to the Financial Agreements chapter in Halsbury’s Laws of Australia.
Her Honour has regularly lectured for the profession and as a guest at various universities. Prior to coming to the bench Justice Christie contributed to numerous conferences and law journals and hopes to continue. She is a member of the Court’s International Committee and has a special interest in the collaborative work with the Supreme Court of Indonesia. She is also a member of the Court’s Children’s Committee and the working group on Interpreter policy.
