Father Wins First Stage In Legal Battle For Children

An unmarried father has won the first stage in a landmark court case to have his two children returned to Ireland from Britain.

On Tuesday, the Irish High Court ruled that the former partner of the man - known only as Mr G - was wrong to have taken his two-year-old twin boys to England.

In his judgement, Mr Justice Liam McKechnie said that the man had started legal proceedings for custody and guardianship of the children and that this meant that their removal from the jurisdiction was wrongful.

The case is the first of its kind. Until now, men in Ireland have had no legal rights over a child born outside of marriage unless they were appointed as a legal guardian.

The High Court heard that the couple, who cannot be named for legal reasons, had been together for three years and were engaged when the woman - known as Mrs O - took the twins back to Manchester, where her parents live, in January this year.

Mr G, a teacher who said that he was the twins' primary carer, claimed that his sons had been taken without warning and without his knowledge or consent.

The court heard how Mrs O left the state in January, but did not make the first formal notification that she intended to remain in the UK until April.

By this time, Mr G has already begun proceedings in an Irish District Court to apply for custody and guardianship of the two children.

He had also applied to the Royal Courts of Justice in London, seeking the return of his children under the Hague Convention and Council Regulation.

However, Mrs Justice Mary Hogg said that she did not have the jurisdiction to make a decision on the case as it was a constitutional issue for the Irish courts. She said that Irish authorities had to determine whether the removal of the children was unlawful under Article 15 of the Hague Convention 1980, which deals with child abduction.

The case is now due to return to the Royal Courts of Justice.

(KMcA/SP)