Appeal against order for return of child to Ukraine dismissed despite ongoing war and child’s objections

The Court of Appeal dismissed an appeal against a High Court order requiring the immediate return of a minor child to the jurisdiction of Ukraine under the Hague Convention, despite the appellant mother’s arguments concerning consent, settlement in Ireland, the child’s objections, and alleged grave risk due to the ongoing war. The High Court had previously found that while the respondent father initially consented to a brief removal of the child amidst the outbreak of war, there was no open-ended consent, and the subsequent concealment of the child's location precluded any finding of acquiescence or settlement in Ireland. The Court of Appeal upheld the High Court’s findings that the child’s objections and fears, while genuine, were based on inaccurate information and not sufficient to outweigh the Convention’s objective of securing the child’s right to a relationship with both parents. Additional evidence on current conditions in the relevant Ukrainian region confirmed the absence of specific grave risk to the child if returned to reside with the father. The appeal was dismissed and the High Court order for the child’s return affirmed.