The High Court has declared that Irish courts have no jurisdiction over parental-responsibility matters concerning a child identified in the judgment as K.J. The court found that the child was habitually resident in Dundee, Scotland, and said welfare issues were for the Scottish courts to decide.
The Child and Family Agency brought an ex parte application on 25 November 2014 under Council Regulation (EC) No. 2201/2003. It sought a declaration that Ireland lacked jurisdiction or, alternatively, an order transferring the matter to Scotland. The High Court heard the application on 9 December and delivered judgment on 11 December. The judge said the application followed an Interpol alert and serious concern for the child’s safety and wellbeing.
The case also raised a question about the District Court’s role under the regulation. The High Court held that it was the appropriate forum to carry out the regulation’s functions. It ruled that the District Court had no power to declare that Ireland lacked jurisdiction, investigate which member state had jurisdiction, or request a transfer under Article 15.
The judgment recounted that a Scottish assessment dated 9 October recommended a Children’s Hearing to consider the child’s circumstances and reported that compulsory care measures were needed. The hearing took place in Dundee on 12 November, in the first defendant’s absence. The judgment said the first defendant and child were located in Ireland on 17 November. Gardaí removed the child from the mother’s care and placed the child with the Child and Family Agency. The Dublin District Court made a one-week emergency care order on 18 November and an interim care order on 26 November, due to expire on 17 December.
The High Court said the child had lived mainly in Scotland, attended a Dundee primary school until 10 October, and had belongings at a rented apartment there. It also noted that the child’s parents had been habitually resident in England and Wales and that the child had lived in England for a period around 2011. The first defendant’s stated explanation for being in Ireland was that she was seeking to evade Scottish social services. The court concluded that the child was habitually resident in Dundee; that conclusion was not contested.
The judge considered a guardian ad litem’s report, including its account of the child’s wishes and its recommendations for assessment of the mother’s capacity and the child’s needs. The guardian suggested a return accompanied by a social care team, with liaison between Irish and Scottish services. The High Court described these as suggested protective measures and left all welfare issues to the Scottish courts. Its operative order was the Article 17 declaration that Ireland had no jurisdiction over parental responsibility. The judgment did not decide the child’s welfare or order a particular return arrangement.