Brazil and international parental child abduction / custody battles

Despite the fact that the Constitution of the Federated Republic of Brazil clearly states that any and all Treaties and Conventions the country ratifies are considered to have the force of Constitutional Amendments, in practice this clearly IS NOT the case.

Judges in Brazil have clearly demonstrated a propencity to completely ignore the Constitution whenever the mood strikes them to do so. This is certainly the case with the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.

It is ironic in the extreme that while Brazil constantly appears on the list of countries who have the worst record of compliance, Brazilian authorities are the first to complain when other countries are acting within the spirit and intent of the Hague Convention and are exercising their sovereign rights to protect their citizens in child custody and abduction cases. There have been a number of cases where foreign born children of a Brazilian parent is legally in the custody of the foreign parent, Brazil continues to demand that the Brazilian parent's rights be respected by foreign courts despite criminal acts, but they in turn do exactly the opposite here in Brazil.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

wjwoodward wrote:

Despite the fact that the Constitution of the Federated Republic of Brazil clearly states that any and all Treaties and Conventions the country ratifies are considered to have the force of Constitutional Amendments, in practice this clearly IS NOT the case.

It doesn't. It states that treaties concerning human rights that where adopted by congress in a spscific way are considered constitutional amendments.

The Hague Conventions are Civil Law conventions, and the convention on the civil aspects of international child abduction has not been adoped by congress in the way it should have been adopted to be considered an amendment to the constitution.

Art 5th of the constitution.
"§ 3º Os tratados e convenções internacionais sobre direitos humanos que forem aprovados, em cada Casa do Congresso Nacional, em dois turnos, por três quintos dos votos dos respectivos membros, serão equivalentes às emendas constitucionais."

I am not in any way agreeing with the way these cases are sometimes treated, just stating the law on the matter.

wjwoodward wrote:

Judges in Brazil have clearly demonstrated a propencity to completely ignore the Constitution whenever the mood strikes them to do so. This is certainly the case with the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.

It is ironic in the extreme that while Brazil constantly appears on the list of countries who have the worst record of compliance, Brazilian authorities are the first to complain when other countries are acting within the spirit and intent of the Hague Convention and are exercising their sovereign rights to protect their citizens in child custody and abduction cases. There have been a number of cases where foreign born children of a Brazilian parent is legally in the custody of the foreign parent, Brazil continues to demand that the Brazilian parent's rights be respected by foreign courts despite criminal acts, but they in turn do exactly the opposite here in Brazil.

It all depends on the lawyers. It is hard to find a competent lawyer on these matters in Brazil. The Goldman case for example took 2 years in State Court, when the matter should have been pushed to Federal court in the first place, as any matters involving treaties is Federal and not State jurisdiction.

Claims should be launched with the central authority:
Secretaria Especial dos Direitos Humanos da Presidência da República
Esplanada dos Ministérios - Bloco T - Sede - Sala 212
Brasília, Distrito Federal, Brasil
Telefones: 00 55 (61) 2025.3975
Fax: 00 55 (61) 2025.3261
e-mail: [email protected]

In that case the AGU (Advogado Geral da União) will launch a case for the repatriation in Federal Court.

If an international Convention on parental rights and custody doesn't fall under the definition of a "Convenção sobre direitos humanos", then I  don't know what does!

I'm sorry this is one area in which the Brazilian judicial system, politicians and lawyers simply pervert the spirit of the law to suite themselves. It's ironic in the extreme that Itamaraty is the first to complain long and loud when it's a case of a Brazilian child in the control of a parent in some foreign country. This is the hight of hipocracy.

Nobody can deny that Brazil consistantly appears on the list of Non-Complying Nations regarding International Child Abduction. It's high time that this country cleans up its own doorstep before they start complaining about their neighbors' doorsteps. Obviously the powers that be in this country have never heard the old saying, "You can't HAVE your cake and EAT it  too".  They seem to  think they can.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

wjwoodward wrote:

If an international Convention on parental rights and custody doesn't fall under the definition of a "Convenção sobre direitos humanos", then I  don't know what does!

The fact remains that it was not accepted as such.

Besides, the treaty is more on international civil procedure than on human rights, and the name of the organisation adopting the treaty is the Hague Convention on Private International Law, and not the Hague Convention on Human Rights.

Clearly it's not accepted as such by Brazil!!!

Then the Brazilian government should have the decency and courage to state publicly that they had no intention whatsoever of honoring the commitments under a Convention which they have ratified; or they should be honest enough to withdraw from the Convention entirely. Hipocracy by any other name is still hipocracy.

How in the name of heaven can this government demand that other countries observe provisions of the Convention when Brazil won't do so. Disgusting!

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

wjwoodward wrote:

Clearly it's not accepted as such by Brazil!!!

Then the Brazilian government should have the decency and courage to state publicly that they had no intention whatsoever of honoring the commitments under a Convention which they have ratified; or they should be honest enough to withdraw from the Convention entirely. Hipocracy by any other name is still hipocracy.

How in the name of heaven can this government demand that other countries observe provisions of the Convention when Brazil won't do so. Disgusting!

In one post you claim that the courts are higher than the government, and now you claim that the government "should have the decency and courage to state publicly that they had no intention whatsoever of honoring the commitments under a Convention".

It's the courts that ultimately decide on whether a child is repatriated, and it's the courts and legal doctrine in Brazil that consider that internal law prevails over international law. It's the courts that drag out these cases for years, if it where up to the central authority, they would be sent back on the next plane.

So, what is it, are the courts highher than the government, and are the courts the blame, or is the government full of hipocrits. It's either one or the other.

You are misquoting what I said. What was stated is that in immigration the Judiciary is superior even to the CNig. They can and do grant Permanência Definitiva Via Judicial quite often. They also overturn decisions made by the Federal Police, Ministry of Justice and CNig all the time when the decisions are wrong or unjust. I never said the courts are above the government in everything. Please go back and re-read the quote.

Regarding the rest of your posting, in the interest of avoiding what clearly appears to be developing into a flame war, I will let you have the last word. If Brazil wants other countries to return Brazilian children to custodial parents in this country they should then start doing so themselves, presently this does not happen. The courts and the government both do everything in their power to prevent it. It is for this very reason that they are consistently on the list of non-complying nations and in fact have a track record regarding repatriation of abducted children that equals many Middle-East countries. They also will not extradite a Brazilian citizen to face criminal charges regarding kidnapping, this is a fact that non-custodial (Brazilian) parents who abscond with their children rely heavily upon. Furthermore the govenment also goes to great lengths to attempt to free Brazilians who are jailed abroad for parental abduction.  This is an undeniable fact.

The entire thrust of this posting was to warn (foreign) parents who have minor children who hold multiple citizenship that they should be extremely careful regarding custody issues if their relationship with the Brazilian parent is in jeopardy. Given the laws here in Brazil, no matter how that child gets brought into Brazil (legally or otherwise) it's going to be a long, ugly, uphill battle in order to regain custody and have the child repatriated. You certainly CAN'T deny that is true.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

wjwoodward wrote:

If Brazil wants other countries to return Brazilian children to custodial parents in this country they should then start doing so themselves, presently this does not happen. The courts and the government both do everything in their power to prevent it.

I completely agree with you. The problem however does not lie with the government, but with the court system, and especially the doctrine which exists even within the Supreme Court, that national law is higher in hierarchy than International law.

For you as a canadian, and for me as a dutchman and as a dutch/brazilian trained lawyer, that just doesn't fly, but changeing this will take time.

wjwoodward wrote:

It is for this very reason that they are consistently on the list of non-complying nations and in fact have a track record regarding repatriation of abducted children that equals many Middle-East countries.

I always advice single parents that want to know about their kids visiting a Brazilian father/mother in Brazil *NOT* to do it. If they want to visit, have them come to you.

It changed a bit since the CNJ edited a decree that children habitually living abroad don't need an authorization to travel with just one parent.

wjwoodward wrote:

They also will not extradite a Brazilian citizen to face criminal charges regarding kidnapping, this is a fact that non-custodial (Brazilian) parents who abscond with their children rely heavily upon. Furthermore the govenment also goes to great lengths to attempt to free Brazilians who are jailed abroad for parental abduction.

I doubt the US or Canada would extradite a national to Brazil. My country, the Netherlands, only extradite dutch nationals to the US for trial, under the condition they can serve their time in the Netherlands.

I can't speak for the USA, but I know Canada extradites Canadian citizens facing criminal charges in foreign countries quite frequently. The only exception to this practice in Canada is when the individual faces potential conviction for a capital crime, in this case Canada will only extradite with official guarantees that the death penalty will not be sought by the courts. I would think that in most cases the USA will also do the same. Both countries take their international responsibilities quite seriously, unlike Brazil.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

I think is bogus to say that Brazilian government and law enforcement stands for their citizens when comes to anything. Majority of those women that go ahead and breed with foreign men are very poor and uneducated and are trying to run away from a system that is only good for ten percent of the population. Don't take the Goldman case like is always happening like that. Not all of us have a rich lawyer awaiting for protecting us from anything. What I see here in Norway is that women have their children taken away from them for merely cultural differences on if a child should have a shower daily or not and for them here the children would be rather better in a orphanage then with their own mother in Brazil anytime. For me, differences like that of they should or should not extradite their own citizens for trial in another country are not better or worse, they are only differences.

It creeps me out to read that some lawyer is advising some people not to allow children to visit the brazilian families because they have a chance of being kidnapped by their brazilian parent. I think this is a little bit too much. Is like tell everyone to stay away from knifes or else someone should get hurt.

I respect your opinion Janaina, however I personally don't share it. As I see it the problem here is the Brazilian government which is notorious for signing international treaties and conventions and then ignoring the responsibilities that are imposed by them. While Brazil is a signatory nation to the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction they have a terrible track record when it comes to compliance with it. Ironic since when the shoe is on the other foot and it's a Brazilian child abducted to some other country the Brazilian government wants the whole world to stop in its tracks until the child is returned. You can't have it both ways!!!

Don't get me wrong, I love Brazil and wouldn't live anywhere else. That said, it doesn't mean that I think there's nothing wrong with this country - there's more than any population deserves to put up with. The problem of international child abduction is just one of the symptoms of antiquated laws (both criminal and civil), a justice system that is dysfunctional and a government that in many ways is still a just dictatorship in disguise.

I have a Brazilian child who also is a Canadian citizen, if my homeland refused to immediately return a Brazilian child to a Brazilian parent who had legal custody and had been abducted back to Canada I'd be outraged. If the government shielded the abductor I'd be more outraged still, so much so that I'd renounce my Canadian citizenship. Fortunately, I don't have to worry about that since Canada, unlike Brazil, takes its commitments under treaties and conventions very seriously.

Regarding the Goldman case, I'm sorry to say that it's not an isolated incident. There are several more just like it that are still unresolved because of legal and governmental foot dragging. At present there are at least 7 cases that are just like the Goldman case, they're going absolutely nowhere in the Brazilian judicial system either. This is not only a violation of the Convention but also a disgrace.

As for Brazilian women who marry foreigners, I see absolutely nothing wrong with that. I hardly think that they're uneducated, quite to the contrary I know many very educated Brazilians (both men and women) who are married to foreigners. You can't paint everybody with the same brush.

  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

You know about several cases of children that are in horrible Brasil against their foreign parents will? Like 7? I know about at least more than 20 brazilian women that are held like hostages in Norway by men that doesn't want them to go back to their respective families because they don't want to pay extra child support. They falsely accused their ex wife's of being crazy and not fit of being parent. In Sweden one child is in a orphanage and they won't give him to his mother in Brazil, even though his father is a drug addicted in a institution. I don't know how many of them have to stay in a marriage because they are afraid of loose their children custody. Brazilian goverment does nothing for them. Seems to me that you are very much in contact with this 10 percent of the brazilian population that have education and influence to have their rights granted to them. I know that Brazil has a lot to change. But over protecting their citizens against nations that feel superior to them by misuse of stupid treaties isn't one of them.

Janaina,

I'm not sure where all your hostility is coming from. Obviously you have some personal issue behind it, but this is NOT the place to resolve them or even vent your anger.

The point that is being made in this posting is a point of law and compliance with the law. If, as I suspect, you have some unresolved issues surrounding custody of a child in Norway I strongly suggest you deal with it there and do so through the courts and other authorities who may have jurisdiction.

Regardless, it does not change the fact that here in Brazil authorities are ignoring international treaties and conventions and have been doing so for many years.

The following is a direct quote from the 2013 Compliance Report on the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction:

"Brazil demonstrated patterns of non-compliance with the Convention in the areas of judicial and law enforcement
performance. While the U.S. Central Authority has a close working relationship with the Brazilian Central Authority (BCA)
and the Office of the Attorney General, significant delays for relief under the Convention in Brazilian federal courts remain
a serious issue, as do delays in locating children by Brazilian law enforcement. The judicial process is drawn out in Brazil;
appeals add months, and sometimes years, to Convention cases. There are six active cases that have been pending a final
resolution in the Brazilian courts for more than 18 months. There were also delays and difficulties by Brazilian law
enforcement in locating children in 2012. In one case, the left-behind parent was notified that law enforcement located their
child; however, law enforcement later admitted that the child's location was still unknown. In another case, a petition was
filed with the BCA in January 2012, yet law enforcement never attempted to locate the child."

Regarding the case you mention in Sweden, this is anecdotal information only, no details whatever are given. It's easy to say "I heard that...." or "I know of....." without backing a statement with any concrete information, so it is of little importance. I will say however that in almost every country in the civilized world family law always places great importance on the rights of biological parents. If the courts in Sweden are not returning custody of the child you mention then there is obviously a compelling reason that prevents them from doing so.

As far as the Brazilian government not helping Brazilian parents in foreign countries, they simply can't... while abroad Brazilians are subject to the laws of the nation in which they may be, just as any foreigner is here in Brazil. The best that any country can do for its citizens abroad is to provide them with information and help them contact a local lawyer who can act for them. Do you really think that if I had some legal problem here in Brazil that the Canadian government would do anything more than that for me???? If so, think again.


  Cheers, 
  William James Woodward – Brazil Animator, Expat-blog Team

Just another sad case in this ongoing disrespect for international conventions and treaties:

An American woman and her 6-year old American born daughter are stranded in Brazil after having their passports siezed by Federal Police over a custody/visitation dispute with the child's Brazilian father.

The woman has full custody of the child since the Brazilian father was deported from the USA for entering the country illegally through Mexico.

Foolishly, and obviously without knowing anything about Brazilian laws the woman allowed her ex-husband to convince her to bring the child to Brazil on the pretext of a family visit by purchasing airline tickets for her.

Despite the fact that the child was born in the USA and despite the father's deportation from that country, the mother may well end up losing custody of the child and having to return home without her. This because the child is considered to be, above all other things, Brazilian because her father is.

Read the following story for full details:

http://www.thedalleschronicle.com/news/ … r-custody/

If you have a child with Brazilian blood and custody is an issue this should give you real cause to avoid bringing your child to this country under any circumstances.

Cheers,
William James Woodward - Brazil & Canada Expert, Expat-blog Team

Old news William. She has been home for quite a while now as far as I know.  Happened six months or so ago.

That it even happens at all is tragic and speaks volumes about the patent injustices here in Brazil. I'm glad to know she has returned home and certainly hope that it was WITH her daughter.

As every story has two sides, so does this one and all the others. It is easy to go on rambling about how Brazil disrespects international laws and such but just showing cases that are reported by foreigners - (and therefore showing their side of the story and their point of views) such as the one you've just linked are not the way to go. Study brazilian law, then study international law and then make your case that the brazilian authorities, government and judicial court are acting inadequately. Prove it by quoting specific laws, parts of it and all emendments and agreements.  Don't just go about rambling how Canada and US would act and how they... Brazil is not the US or Canada, is it?
Like any other expat, you do not need to live in Brazil, or any other country than your own. So do not go about trashing it. You seem frustrated with something more than random cases of custody between countries.
You've shown a few cases where Brazilians are involved in custody battles but you forsake the fact that those happen anywhere in the world. Any expat and/or person married to one might have problems if they divorce and their ex-partner wants to return home. That should be solved in a way that is fair to everyone involved, specially the children, but that is not always the case. Things get ugly when couples divorce and adults just want to punish each other for the pain they are suffering. That is not a case of Brazilian law being condescending to international law, nor that almighty US and Canada are fairer or act better. This is a case of people hurting and trying to do what they can to appease their desperation. What everyone involved in these custody battles want is to have a normal life, where they can have contact with their children regularly and thus be a part of their life. But in the proccess they forget to consider the other part, the one they've one day promissed to love and respect forever.
Another factor to consider before going around throwing accusations is that as a Canadian or American (or any other nationality) in a relationship with a brazilian expat is that, despite appearances the level of education of such partner might not be as high as theirs. That their partner might have difficulty continuing life abroad, unable to do so by matters of language, understanding of the culture and level of formal education (making it difficult, sometimes even to keep a job). And that some cultures are really difficult to penetrate making it harder for an expat to be able to continue living in certain countries when they lose the emotional and financial support from their 'local' partners. Intercultural relationships (and all that arises from it) are not just a matter of laws. It is goes deeper and beyond.

In my case, I am considering moving to Brazil with my wife and two children so that she can have a more fulfilling life. I know I can find good work there and adapt to her culture better than she has been able to adapt to mine - not because she has not tried but because it is a drier culture. Like is the case with the Norwegian mother having a present custody battle with Norwegian authorities. This woman does not even speak English (or Norwegian). How would she ever be able to continue in that country alone?
Please don't go around telling people not to let their children visit their extended families in Brazil. I have in the past and will continue to allow my children to travel abroad with their mother.  Assuming she might kidnap them is just the same as assuming she might kill me. Is she physically able to do so? Yes, but that doesn't mean she ever will.

When other people start taking into consideration other people's interests and not just their own, we might start seeing a little bit of improvement.

Hello luligianne,

While I respect your opinion, I certainly do not share it. What I have posted is supported by factual information and international reports on compliance. Brazil has a pathetic track record regarding compliance with all international treaties and conventions, not just the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction.

You are sadly mistaken if you think that I don't know anything about the Brazilian law. I have lived in this country for twelve years now, have a Brazilian wife and child and I also know how other countries treat such cases. Here in Brazil there is a complete lack of interest on the part of the entire judicial system to treat such cases fairly and quickly, unlike most other nations do. As if the Courts in this country aren't slow enough cases end up being delayed for years by various stall tactics that Brazilian lawyers seem to just pull out of a hat when it suits them.

It is ironic, and for me even offensive, that Brazil demands that other countries do what they themselves won't do when it is a case of a Brazilian child abducted here and taken to another country. Pure hypocricy when they refuse to comply with the Convention.

I've seen far too many such cases in my years in this country and I can also tell you from my own experience at least in Canada, the Courts in Canada take the issue of Custodial Interference and International Parental Child Abduction very seriously. They deal with the cases broght before them very quickly and almost without exception the children are returned to the custodial parent in a very timely fashion. Canada, at least, understands that a interferance with a judicial decision made in another souvereign country is a very serious issue. When a Court of Law has decided custody of a child this has not been something that was taken lightly and the non-custodial parent ALWAYS has the right to be heard and to put on a defense. Brazil's attitude is tantamount to infringing on the souverignty of other nations, yet they won't stand for other nations infringing on theirs. Again, pure hypocricy.

I am not involved in such a situation personally so I have no agenda here. I am simply stating facts and giving my own observations to the way the whole issue is handled here in Brazil. When a child is unlawfully removed from a parent and taken out of a country, regardless of the reason, any self respecting nation has a moral obligation to make every effort to return that child to the custodial parent without delay. Brazil simply does not do that, not ever.

My advice still stands.... Anyone who has any doubts about the stability of their custodial rights of a child that has secondary citizenship of Brazil should NEVER consider bringing that child to this country under any circumstances.

As far back as 2009 the US State Department reported that there were at least 50 unresolved cases where the return of US children from Brazil had been made under the Hague Convention.... 50 with only one nation. I can only imagine just how many other unresolved cases there are if we take into account all other nations that are seeking to have abducted children returned from Brazil.

In brief My boy was abducted from Australia to Brazil by his mother on 9th Dec 2012. The process of return of my child is futile in Brazil because 1) Brazil do not comply 2) My x girlfriends family has 2 judges and all the family are well known and are all lawyers.

My question is do you know of any decent lawyers in Sao Paulo who can negotiate direct with the family. I have a good relationship with her family but I have no representation here in Brazil. The family have agreed to negotiate rights of access privately without the courts so this is my only option.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Kind regards

Spencer

Hi Spencer,

First of all my deepest sympathies regarding your very painful situation. I can only imagine just how desparate it makes you feel.

I wouldn't put too much faith in the idea that your ex's family's promise to "negotiate" with you regarding issues surrounding visitation and custody is any sign that they will actually comply with anything they agree to. They know that the Brazilian laws and the disfunctional judicial system in this country are on their side. I really believe that you will end up discovering that all your efforts to negotiate will be a colossal waste of your time and money that doesn't produce any results whatsoever.

Regardless of whether or not you and your son's mother are married, if you are listed as his father on his Birth Certificate you're far better off taking action to obtain your rights in Australia and in Brazil through the Hague Convention. If your ex actually kidnapped the child then the Australian courts should issue a federal arrest warrant for parental child abduction or at the very minimum custodial interference. This should then be registered with the Central Authority (CA) in Australia that handles Hague Convention abduction cases and with the Brazilian Policia Federal.

If you will end up paying for the services of a lawyer in Brazil at any rate, you're far better of paying that lawyer to pursue the case through the Brazilian Courts. It is quite possible that you could spend a fortune to negotiate an agreement that they wouldn't honor anyway and have to procede through the Courts anyway. This is the only course of action that will offer any kind of guarantee, no matter how remote, that you will have your legal rights respected and the other parties will COMPLY.

Is there an existing Custody Order regarding your son in Australia? If so, do you have sole custody or shared custody? That's one thing that will be very important in helping you win your case. One thing to watch out for is that the Hague Convention specifically forbids Courts in the "taking parent's" country from making any rulings regarding custody (interim or final). Since your child's mother seems to have connections to people within the judicial system here it is quite likely that they will ignore this provision of the Convention and make a Custody Order here. This is a common practice in Brazil, yet it is still quite illegal.

Best of luck with your struggle to regain at the very minimum access to your son and hopefully even custody.

Regarding a lawyer São Paulo, the best option would either contact the OAB-SP (Ordem de Advogados do Brasil - São Paulo) or to contact the Australian Consulate in São Paulo and request a list of lawyers qualified in international child abduction cases.

Cheers,
William James Woodward, Expat-blog Experts Team

Spenymoon wrote:

In brief My boy was abducted from Australia to Brazil by his mother on 9th Dec 2012. The process of return of my child is futile in Brazil because 1) Brazil do not comply 2) My x girlfriends family has 2 judges and all the family are well known and are all lawyers.

My question is do you know of any decent lawyers in Sao Paulo who can negotiate direct with the family. I have a good relationship with her family but I have no representation here in Brazil. The family have agreed to negotiate rights of access privately without the courts so this is my only option.

Any help would be greatly appreciated

Kind regards

Spencer

Having judges in the family certainly helps. But Brazil DOES comply, although it takes a long arduous battle.

Due to the nature of this kind of case, it's a federal issue. The application can be made directly to the central authority in Brazil.

Any agreement entered into between parents is useless unless it's homologated by a judge.

You really should do this the hard way. Get your child back.

Hi again Spencer,

There you have it, direct from one of our members who knows the Brazilian judicial system inside and out.

Brazil does comply to the Hague Convention, but it won't be easy or quick. The Sean Goldman case proves that you can succeed if you stick to your guns!

So, the picture isn't all as black as you might paint it in your mind. Don't give up the war before your army fires the first shot. Good luck we'll all be here behind you all the way and if you need moral support or help with information, just ask.

Hello James,

Question regarding child custody in Brazil.  Is it possible for an unemployed and non tax paying foreigner on a VIPER visa to be granted 100% custody of a Brazilian born child; the mother is 100% Brazilian and employed sporadically?  If yes, how will the authorities handle a situation where the Brazilian mother abducts the child from the foreign father?  Thank you.

Hello, I have a granddaughter that is living in Brazil with her mother that is from Atlanta, GA.  My granddaughter was born in Brazil which makes her Brazilian.  The mother had conceived her child with my son in Atlanta, Ga then moved to Brazill to have the child.  Now the mother refuses to return to the USA.  The couple never married.  I have been robbed of my relationship with my grand daughter as well as the father.  What can We do to get visitation or make the mother return to the USA and allow visitation of his child?  Any help would be greatly appreciated.  I'm aware of the legitimatization that is needed by the Atlanta courts, but we never know when the mother will visit to have her served to do so.  Is it true the mother will be forced to return to the US after 10years.  Due to she had a baby in Brazil she now has a free visa.

Alicia Anderson

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