E, Z, D, V (Inherent Jurisdiction: Refusal of Return Order), Re

His Honour Judge Middleton-Roy Acting as a Judge of the High Court ____________________

Ms Jennifer Perrins, Counsel for the Applicant, instructed by international Family Law Group LLP Mr Gibson-Lee, Counsel for the Respondent and Intervenor, instructed by Chancery Children's Services Solicitors Hearing date: 25-26 April 2024 ____________________

a. The welfare of the child is the Court's paramount consideration; the focus has to be on the individual child in the particular circumstances of the case; there should be no assumptions about what is best for an individual child; reference should be made to the welfare checklist in s1(3) of the�Children�Act 1989;

b. The specialist rules and concepts of the Hague Convention are not to be applied by analogy in a non-Convention case: there is no warrant to extend the principles of the Hague Convention 1980;

c. The Court has power, in accordance with the welfare principle, to order the immediate�return�of the child to a foreign�jurisdiction�without conducting a full investigation of the merits;