Sharing custody of a child can require parents to establish or maintain some amount of trust between the two of them. It can be very difficult to do this, especially considering the fact that parents often split up because of a lack of trust in their relationship. That is why there are also legal arrangements in place to back up any parenting agreement, as well as criminal consequences for any parent who violates a custody or visitation order.
But when a violation occurs in a different state — or worse, a different country — it can be very difficult for a parent here in Texas to know what to do. Many people will try to take matters into their own hands, but that could only make the situation worse. In these serious cases, working through the legal avenues to correct a violation can be the best way to peacefully and effectively resolve an international child custody dispute.
Recently, a mother was reunited with her children in the United States after their father wrongfully kept them in Russia. The mother had agreed to send her children to Russia to spend the summer with their father but around the time the father was supposed to send the kids back to the U.S., the mother got an upsetting call. The father said he would not be sending the kids back.
Understandably, the woman was very upset. In an attempt to get her children back, she went to Russia and planned to take her kids from their school there without the father’s knowledge and then come back home. However, the plan failed to work and only made the situation more confusing.
However, by working with Russian authorities and explaining the situation, the woman was able to prove her case and win her children back. The mother and children were reunited last month and the father was charged with child abduction.
When one parent violates the trust of another parent by failing to comply with a custody or visitation schedule, it can be very difficult to know what to do. The situation can get even more confusing when the dispute involves parents in two different countries. However, instead of taking on the situation alone and without legal support, parents can work through the proper channels to legally correct a situation, which can be the safest solution.
Source: The Columbia Daily Tribune, “Children returned to mom in United States,” Dec. 16, 2013