The child was born in 1990 to a French father and a Canadian mother. He had always lived in France. On 13 May 1992, the mother unilaterally decided to take the child to Canada to live with her. In 1993, a Canadian Court granted custody of the child to the mother. The various applications for custody from the father were dismissed.
On 5 March 1993, the father referred to the French Ministry of Justice as Central Authority, in order to grant him the assistance provided for by the Hague Convention. On 7 June 1993, the Ministry replied that in view of the facts at its disposal, the removal of the child did not breach any rights of custody and therefore could not be qualified as unlawful within the meaning of the Convention.
On 4 June 1994, the father filed an application with the Administrative Court of Paris seeking an order to establish that the father had parental authority over the child at the time of the removal and to consequently cancel the decision of 7 June 1993.
On 21 February 1996, the Court dismissed the father’s application. The latter lodged an appeal against this decision. On 11 July 1997, the Administrative Court of Appeal of Paris dismissed the claim for cancellation of the decision of the Ministry of Justice. On 7 November 1997, the father referred to the Conseil d’Etat (supreme administrative court), which dismissed his claim on 30 June 1999.
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