Family

Jurisdiction under Art 8 of Council Regulation (EC) 2201/2003 (Brussels II) depended upon where the child was habitually resident. An approach which held that presence was a necessary pre-cursor to residence and thus habitual residence was one which accorded most closely with the factual situation of the child. However, it could not be said that that was acte claire for the purpose of EU law. Article 14 of the Regulation applied where no court of a member state had jurisdiction under Arts 8 to 13. Where no other member state was involved, either the courts of England and Wales had jurisdiction under Art 8 or no court of a member state did so. In that case, the jurisdiction of England and Wales was determined by the laws of England and Wales.