When two worlds collide: the 1970 Hague Evidence Convention and the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention

Dr Onyója Momoh Barrister 5 Pump Court Chambers

Most will agree that the relationship between the 1980 and 1996 Hague Conventions is a match made in heaven. However the intersection between the 1970 Hague Evidence Convention and the 1980 Hague Child Abduction Convention is far less harmonious particularly in an application for rights of access under Article 21 as seen in Case X. When the 1980 Hague Convention came into play a decade after the Evidence Convention the drafters did not consider it necessary to rely on the latter’s procedural framework for taking or exchanging evidence in abduction or contact cases. So far as bureaucratic hurdles are concerned invoking the Evidence Convention is arbitrary offering little practical benefit to family law proceedings under the 1980 Hague Convention. As in Case X it is an under-explored issue but may be a non-event. Nevertheless the taking or hearing evidence from abroad is commonplace in 1980 Hague Convention cases or other children act proceedings with an international element. While variations in how 'evidence' is defined across jurisdictions are expected efforts should be made to prevent delays in inter-jurisdictional co-operation. 

Read the full article here.