Sottrazione internazionale di minori nell’Unione Europea: il coordinamento tra il Regolamento (CE) n. 2201/2003 e la Convenzione dell’Aja del 1980

Abstract

Where a child is abducted from one Member State of the European Union to another Member State, the 1980 Hague Convention apply as complemented by the provisions of the Regulation (EC) n. 2201/2003. Where a court decides that a child shall not return pursuant to Article 13 of the 1980 Hague Convention, the Regulation foresees a special procedure to assure that the courts of the Member State where the child was habitually resident before the abduction will have the final say in determining whether or not the child shall return. Such a decision will affect the attribution of jurisdiction on the substance of the case, i.e. the question of custody, and, if the decision entails the return of the child, such judgment is directly recognised and enforceable in the other Member State. The interpretation of these rules is controversial: the Court of Justice and Italian Corte di Cassazione ascertain which provisions of the Regulation are intrinsically connected with the 1980 Hague Convention and which others diverge from the pre-existing system.