The child, a girl was 1 _ at the date of the alleged wrongful removal. She had until then lived her entire life in the United States. The parents were married and had joint rights of custody. By 2002, the parents’ were experiencing marital problems and on 25 September 2002, the mother secretly took her daughter to South Africa, to the home of the maternal grand-parents.
On 22 November, the Durban and Coast Local Division ordered the return of the child, subject to undertakings being made and mirror orders being entered in New Jersey. The mother appealed. On 14 February 2003, the Full Court of the Natal Provincial Division allowed the appeal, finding the Article 13(1)(b) exception to have been proved to the standard required under the Convention. The father appealed.
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