Subtração internacional de crianças: a violência doméstica como hipótese de exceção ao retorno da criança ao país de residência habitual

Abstract

This monograph examines whether domestic violence against women may operate, within the Brazilian legal context, as a legitimate ground to prevent the immediate return of a child under the 1980 Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. Recognizing domestic violence as a structural and transnational phenomenon, the study investigates how such violence affects children, directly or indirectly, and how it frequently motivates international abductions carried out by mothers seeking to escape abusive environments. The research is structured around three analytical axes: (i) a technical overview of the Hague Convention, including its mechanisms, objectives and exceptions; (ii) an assessment of domestic violence as a decisive factor in cross-border custody disputes, supported by statistical data, scholarly literature and relevant case law, particularly the Brazilian Supreme Court’s review in ADI nº 7686; and (iii) an evaluation of institutional shortcomings and the need for coordinated action among Brazilian authorities to ensure qualified celerity and effective protection of women and children. The study concludes that a purely literal interpretation of Article 13(b) is insufficient to address contemporary forms of domestic violence. A purposive and child-centered interpretation is required so that return is denied whenever repatriation would expose the child, directly or indirectly, to the violent environment from which the abused parent fled.