Edward Bennett in KN v KR [2025] EWHC 2338 (Fam)
18th Nov 2025 | Cases
Edward Bennett, instructed by Goodman Ray, acted for the Applicant Father in KN v KR [2025] EWHC 2338 (Fam); an application by a father seeking the return of child to Australia.
In this case the father, from Australia, applied under the Hague Convention and the Child Abduction and Custody Act 1985 for the summary return of his seven-year-old daughter (“the Child”) from the UK, where the mother had taken her and a sibling on tourist visas.
The parties were nationals of Australia and the Child had been habitually resident in Australia at the date of removal and the father held rights of custody, rendering the removal/retention wrongful.
The mother opposed the return under Article 13(b), alleging past domestic abuse, coercive control, mental health vulnerability, and risk posed by the parents’ religious organisation. The father offered protective undertakings and detailed safeguards to mitigate risks, including supervised contact, non-attendance at key events, school funding, private health insurance and maintenance of confidentiality of accommodation.
The Court found the removal to be wrongful and rejected the mother’s Article 13(b) defence, concluding that the proposed protective measures were sufficient to enable a safe return. The mother’s parallel asylum claim in the UK, which was certified as “clearly unfounded” with only judicial review remaining, did not prevent the making or implementation of a return order. The Court therefore ordered the Child’s return to Australia subject to the father’s undertakings.
