What to Do If Your Own Child Has Been Abducted by a Close Relative

If you have learned that your spouse — including a former spouse — has, without your proper consent or through active deception, taken your child to the jurisdiction of another country (for example, from the Russian Federation to the USA) and is not willing to voluntarily return the child, or has deliberately begun to conceal the child's actual whereabouts, it is important to take the right steps to bring the child home.

When a child is unlawfully removed — for example to the jurisdiction of the USA — the situation is complicated by the fact that the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction has not been ratified between the USA and the Russian Federation. Those who seek legal assistance from us are therefore confronted with the absence of 'direct' mechanisms enabling the return of the 'abducted' child to Russian territory. The manner in which the child was brought to the USA does not matter (the child may enter the USA both legally and illegally, including across the US–Mexico border). Official correspondence between those facing this 'abduction' problem and Russian state bodies (the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, the Ministry of Education, the Presidential Commissioner for Children's Rights, law enforcement, and other state authorities) expressly points to the 'impossibility' of providing such assistance on the part of the competent bodies, including in light of current geopolitical factors.

Broadly speaking, all measures to return an 'abducted' child can be divided into two consecutive and directly related stages:

1. Actions that must be taken in the country of the child's habitual residence — for example, the Russian Federation;

2. Measures that must be carried out in the jurisdiction of the child's current location — for example, the USA.

Measures in the country of the child's habitual residence:

1. If, at the time of the child's 'abduction' — for instance on Russian territory — you have not previously applied to the courts for a custody determination, you must file a statement of claim as soon as possible with the court at your place of residence, seeking a determination of the child's place of residence. Together with the statement of claim you must also file a motion for a ruling that the child should reside with you until the final court decision is issued;

2. If you already have (or have previously obtained) the above-mentioned court decision — whether a Russian court ruling or a ruling from another country — it must be apostilled and translated into English (or another relevant language);

3. You must urgently contact the law enforcement authorities with an appropriate report and pursue the opening of a criminal case in order to have the 'abductor' and the child placed on the wanted list, including via Interpol. Law enforcement agencies do not always cooperate with applicants, but there is an established practice of opening criminal cases in such circumstances.

Measures in the country where the child is currently located (using the USA as an example):

1. Submit a request to the official US Customs and Border Protection website for the date of crossing the state border (the child's foreign passport number, full name as written in the foreign passport, is required);

2. Where possible, establish the child's actual location: the state, city, street, building number, and apartment number. This information can be obtained, among other ways, from social media or from people who may be in contact with the 'abductor'. In cases where the 'abductor' deliberately conceals the child's location, there are many methods of establishing the necessary information, including the engagement of private investigators, OSINT specialists, and others;

3. After establishing the child's exact location, use the internet service https://www.google.com/maps to locate the nearest Family Court (using the search phrase 'Family Court');

4. On the court's website, find the section with forms and petitions on child custody and recognition of an out-of-state court order;

5. If you have a court ruling or appellate decision from a Russian court — or from another country — establishing that the 'abducted' child should reside with you, under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) that ruling can be recognised in court in most US states — provided fewer than six months have passed since the child arrived in the given state. In practice, this court process takes anywhere from several weeks to a month, rarely longer;

6. If more than six months have already passed since the child arrived in a particular US state, it is still possible to have the existing Russian court ruling or appellate decision recognised — provided the court proceedings at the child's place of residence were commenced before entry into the USA. In such circumstances, the court process may take several months or more;

7. If the child is being subjected to physical or other harm by the 'abductor', or is in danger, you may apply to the US child protection authorities — the Department of Children and Families. However, the child may be removed from both parties by those authorities, and the family conflict between the two parents will shift into a different arena, where it will be necessary to prove to the US authorities through court and other proceedings that it is in the child's best interests to be placed with you — in other words, you will effectively need to 'reclaim' custody of your own child.

In summary: in any situation — whether or not a Russian court ruling exists, whether the six-month period has passed or not — you have the right to file the necessary documents in a US Family Court. However, the chances of the child being returned in such circumstances depend, based on existing practice, heavily on time. The decisive factor in the child's return is competent action and the timely commencement of the relevant procedures.

Obtaining a visa, engaging a lawyer, investigator, and other specialists in a foreign jurisdiction, representation under a power of attorney — what is important to know:

1. If you have relevant experience, knowledge, and communication skills — for example because you have travelled frequently to various foreign countries, are comfortable communicating with native speakers in a business context, and do not experience stress when operating independently in a foreign country — you may try to obtain a US visa and, once there, personally file the documents in the relevant US Family Court to obtain the required ruling (at present, there are a number of complications relating to obtaining visas due to the current geopolitical situation);

2. You may also engage a local US family law attorney independently, who will represent your interests, file all the necessary forms and petitions (in practice, attorneys in the USA typically charge a retainer of between $15,000 and $35,000 or more for a case involving the return of a child, depending on the state and city).

It should be noted, however, that a US attorney will simply prepare and file the documents and appear in court — while the full range of other necessary (pre-litigation) steps, including establishing the exact location of the 'abducted' child, will fall to you to carry out independently and by other means (for example by engaging private investigators and other local specialists in the USA);

3. You may grant a notarised power of attorney to a Russian international lawyer to represent your interests before US courts. That lawyer, acting independently as your representative in the USA, will file the necessary forms and petitions with the US Family Court using established connections and professional contacts, will independently conduct the full range of 'pre-litigation' steps within the foreign jurisdiction — including establishing the exact location of the 'abducted' child — and will individually assess the specific situation and identify the 'shortest path' to returning the child to his or her primary environment (in practice, the cost of such services from international lawyers is significantly lower than the fees charged by US attorneys, is always individual, and depends on a wide range of factors).

P.S.: If you have unresolved questions on the subject of returning 'abducted' children from foreign jurisdictions, you may find answers in our Telegram channel https://t.me/kidnapchild, on the website www.arturkuznetcov.team, or you may ask a question by contacting us through those resources.

Respectfully,

Attorney Artur Kuznetsov