Adoption, Guardianship and Child Custody (Jurisdiction and Choice of Law Issues)

A couple from Mumbai working in London have a daughter. The marriage breaks down, the mother flies home to Navi Mumbai with the child, and the father gets an English court order saying the girl must return. Which court decides where she should live: the English court that already ruled, or the Indian court where she now is? And separately, if a family in Texas wishes to adopt an orphan from a Mumbai institution, whose law governs the adoption? Children cross borders faster than the law does, and this topic shows how Indian law copes.

In two minutes

In children's matters the guiding idea is the welfare of the child; Indian law governs adoption through the Hindu Adoptions and Maintenance Act 1956 for Hindus and the Juvenile Justice Act 2015 (including inter-country adoption under CARA), guardianship and custody through the Hindu Minority and Guardianship Act 1956 and the Guardians and Wards Act 1890, and treats foreign custody orders as material, not binding.

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