Facts
A. and B. are the unmarried parents of C. (born 2008). Since the separation of the parents in 2009, C. has been living with the mother. On September 16, 2014, joint parental responsibility was granted to the parents.
On December 9, 2015, the mother applied for permission to move with her daughter to Bonn as of February 1, 2016, with an adjustment of the child's interests; the personal contact was to be newly regulated.
On January 27, 2016, the KESB (Child and Adult Protection Authority) granted consent to the change of the daughter's place of residence and regulated the personal contact between her and the father for the transitional period after the move. Furthermore, it denied the suspensive effect of any possible appeal.
Subsequently, the mother moved with the child to Bonn in early February 2016.
Considerations
The Federal Court states that with the child's move to another Contracting State of the Hague Convention on the Protection of Children of October 19, 1996 (HCCH) and the establishment of the child's habitual residence there, the Swiss decision-making jurisdiction ceases to apply. This also generally applies to the court dealing with a legal remedy.
The Federal Court finds that various principles are in conflict. On the one hand, the child's best interests in certain situations require a rapid decision, on the other hand, this must not undermine the right of access to a court. The Hague Convention on the Protection of Children provides for a jurisdiction regime that brings about a change of competence and consciously departs from the perpetuatio fori.
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