Matrimonial and parental responsibility judgments — jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement

SUMMARY OF:

Regulation (EU) 2019/1111 on jurisdiction, recognition and enforcement of decisions in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility, and on international child abduction

WHAT IS THE AIM OF THE REGULATION?

It repeals Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003, known as ‘The Brussels IIa Regulation’, to provide more effective rules protecting children and their parents caught up in cross-border parental-responsibility disputes, for example concerning custody, access rights and child abduction.
It aims to speed up procedures because of the need to move quickly to protect the best interests of the child in many of these circumstances.

KEY POINTS

The regulation applies to civil matters* of:

divorce;
legal separation;
marriage annulment;
parental responsibility (attributing, exercising, delegating, restricting or terminating), in particular:
- custody and access rights;
- guardianship, curatorship* and similar institutions;
- children in institutional or foster care;
- protecting children in relation to their personal property.

Maintenance obligations are excluded from the regulation’s scope.

In a cross-border context, the regulation provides for:

harmonised rules on jurisdiction in matters of divorce, legal separation and marriage annulment;
harmonised rules on jurisdiction in parental-responsibility disputes such as custody, access rights or placement of a child in another EU country;
improved return procedure in cases of child abduction by introducing clear deadlines so that cases can be settled quickly; courts of first and second instance will have to give their decisions within 6 weeks;
promoting mediation;
children being given the opportunity to be heard in the proceedings concerning them;
eliminating the need for an intermediary procedure (‘exequatur’) for decisions on parental responsibility, saving time and expense for individuals;
clearer rules about placing children in another EU country, including the need for consent in all situations, except where a child is to be placed with a parent;
more effective implementation of decisions, introducing possible grounds for suspending or refusing enforcement;
simplified circulation of decisions, authentic instruments* and certain agreements within the EU through rules on recognition and enforcement in other EU countries;
better collaboration between the central authorities of the different EU countries and between the courts, while respecting the rights of the parties and confidentiality.

The best interests of the child remain the primary consideration, in accordance with Article 24 of the Charter of Fundamental Rights of the European Union and the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child of 20 November 1989, as implemented by national law and procedure.

The regulation complements the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction which addresses decisions ordering the return of the child to their country of origin.

Repeal

Regulation (EU) 2019/1111 repeals Regulation (EC) No 2201/2003 as of 1 August 2022.

FROM WHEN DOES THE REGULATION APPLY?

It applies from 1 August 2022. Some rules concerning delegated acts and the requirement of EU countries to supply information to the European Commission apply from 22 July 2019.

BACKGROUND

For more information, see:

Adoption of new rules to better protect children caught in cross-border parental disputes — press release (European Commission).

KEY TERMS

Civil matters: civil court proceedings and the resulting decisions. For the purposes of the regulation, the term includes all applications, measures or decisions relating to ‘parental responsibility’ within the meaning of this regulation, in accordance with its objectives, and based on established case-law of the Court of Justice of the European Union.

Curatorship: an individual who has been legally appointed to take care of the interests of one who, on account of his youth, or defect of his understanding, or for some other cause, is unable to attend to them himself. It is applied to the guardian of the estate of the ward (i.e. an infant placed by authority of law under the care of a guardian) as distinguished from the guardian of their person.

Authentic instruments: defined in Regulation (EC) No 805/2004 as:

a document which has been formally drawn up or registered as an authentic instrument, and the authenticity of which:
- relates to the signature and the content of the instrument; and
- has been established by a public authority or other authority empowered for that purpose by the EU country in which it originates;

an arrangement relating to maintenance obligations concluded with administrative authorities or authenticated by them.

MAIN DOCUMENT

Council Regulation (EU) 2019/1111 of 25 June 2019 on jurisdiction, the recognition and enforcement of decisions in matrimonial matters and the matters of parental responsibility, and on international child abduction (Recast) (OJ L 178, 2.7.2019, pp. 1-115)