Facts
[A.] and [B.] are the parents of [C.] (born 2007) and [D.] (born 2009). [C.] suffers from Down syndrome and autism, [D.] from a speech development disorder. On 25 October 2015, the father gave the mother written permission to move with the children to Spain and enrol them in school there. On 26 December 2015, the mother travelled with the children to Spain, where they registered on 28 December 2015. In early January 2016, [D.] was enrolled in school, while further assessments were initially required for [C.] . At the end of January 2016, the father travelled to Spain to visit the children. Without the mother's knowledge, he took the children back to Switzerland on 5 February 2016, where he registered them. On 17 February 2016, the mother filed a request for the return of the children.Considerations
The High Court of the Canton of Bern ordered the father to hand over the children to the mother for return to Spain within 24 hours of receiving the decision. The Federal Supreme Court confirmed this decision. It concluded that the children had their habitual residence in Spain at the time they were taken by the father, and therefore the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction applies. Although the father had given consent for the move to Spain, this consent was not defective. There was…