Last month, we wrote on an international child custody and removal case that was being presented to the New Jersey Supreme Court. The case is now over and the young child has returned to her mother in Turkey after the state Supreme Court ruled that the stay put in place by the Passaic County Family Court should be lifted.

According to information contained in court documents, the father and daughter came to New Jersey in 2008, and the mother has been pursuing custody ever since that time in Turkish and New Jersey courts. The 9-year-old girl is a U.S. citizen since she was born in this state in 2002. In prior custody proceedings the Passaic County Family Court and the Appellate Division both ruled in favor of the mother, prompting the father to bring the case to the state Supreme Court’s attention. The father also filed an appeal with the U.S. Supreme Court.

The father’s legal options in the U.S. appear to be exhausted, but his attorney believes that he can continue custody proceedings in Turkey. The attorney interpreted the opinion rendered by the Family Court and affirmed by the Appellate Division as jurisdictional in scope, sending the case to Turkish courts for further determination.

The legal proceedings in this case could provide guidance in future international child custody cases, which can involve application of a complex array of laws. According to the attorney for the mother, this case is only the second in the country to hold that a trial court has the authority to rule on the proper custody of a “well-settled child.”

Source: Clifton Journal, “Custody battle settled,” Tony Gicas, Oct. 12, 2012

• Domestic child removal cases can also present their own complexities and difficulties. Parents involved in such disputes can learn more by visiting our New Jersey child relocation page.