XBF v XBE [2024] SGHCF 42

Outcome: Appeals Allowed.

Facts

1            The DJ granted care and control of the parties’ three children to the mother and allowed her to relocate to Indonesia with them. The father appealed against both orders.

Court’s Decision:

2            The primary issue in this case is the relocation of the children, not which parent should be granted care and control. The two issues must be examined together. It cannot be assumed, as the court below did, that relocation follows the issue of care and control. The court should consider whether it is in the best interests for the children to be relocated to Indonesia, and the question of care and control can be determined as part of that inquiry. The best interests of the children may overlap with the best interests of the mother, but they are not the same.: at [6].

3            Abduction (by parents of their children) is the act of taking the children of the marriage away from the other parent without consent or a court order. In this case, the children were all born in Singapore, lived in Singapore with parents who are not divorced or separated, and taken away to attend a wedding (of the Respondent’s brother) in Bali, only to be whisked away to another part of Indonesia without the knowledge or consent of the other parent, and without any court order.: at [11].

4            Even if the Respondent had been the primary caregiver, the DJ should not have ordered a relocation on the facts and circumstances of the present case.: at [14].

5            It is in the best interests of the children for them to remain in Singapore, and presently, with the Appellant and his parents. The issue of care and control may be litigated again in divorce proceedings. It should not, on the facts of this case, be conflated with the issue of relocation.: at [19].

The full text of the decision can be found here. 

This summary is provided to assist the public to have a better understanding of the Court’s judgment. It is not intended to be a substitute for the reasons of the Court. All numbers in bold font and square brackets refer to the corresponding paragraph numbers in the Court’s judgment.