CHILD SEARCH & PARENT SEARCH INVESTIGATIONS
Reuniting Children and Parents of Child Abduction & Relocation.
If you are a left behind parent and your child is reported missing, the ability to process, make rational decisions, regulate your emotion can hinder many parents focusing on the necessary action steps required.
Whether your child is believed to have been abducted, relocated or you are experiencing parental alienation and have experienced no contact from your child, the process to recover your children who are missing is critical.
For many parents, they do nothing until it becomes too late, making the process to relocate more challenging.
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What You Have To Do If Your Child Is Missing​
The first 24-48 hours are crucial because you must provide information to and answer questions from the authorities and appointed investigators. You staying home is crucial because especially if your child on any event calls you.
Gather information even if you think it is not important, identifying pieces of background information and evidence can help for investigators and law enforcement involved.
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Child Search And Parent Search Investigations
After the first 24-48 hours a search for a child now is considered ‘long term’, and for many parents, this can be difficult for some and the decision to be involved actively can be challenged based on varied factors. Some of these could also be the bounds that both Hagues, Law enforcement and appointed investigators can work within the legislation of both the country and state when searching for missing children.
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Child and Parent Search Private Investigations specialise in sensitive matters is an avenue provided for parents considering an alternative outside the immediate search when not successful.
Parenting Together Apart for Parents NOT Together founder Jeannie, recognised a gap in the process of searching for information of missing children after her own experience in 2003 and 2014 when two attempts of child abduction of her son from Australia. Regardless if the child is moved to another Hagues country, its court jurisdiction is the decision maker, and whether it recognises child abduction as the dominant factor, if it is treated outside this, then likely the matter is then viewed in the abductee country family legal pathway and therefore, the narrative of the legal pathway will have changed. This can make it difficult for many parents, difficult for the residential countries who are then restricted to return children by the power of nothing more than what that abductee country decides, hence, the power of Hagues thins.
Child Search and Parent Search Investigations provide the benchmark for professional services and deliver certainty of information and facts. Our collaborative partners combine industry experience with understanding of the needs of such sensitive matters and within the climate they operate in. The team itself mark over hundred years in policing and investigation knowledge and understanding of how to deliver of solutions to each client needs. Some of our teams are operating in Australia and New Zealand, whilst others are providing services overseas.
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Investigations some but not all are through Factual Investigations, Surveillance Investigations, Cyber Intelligence Investigations, and operational including security risk management.
Important information to know that some countries and states prohibit direct investigation of children considered as a minor, and therefore, the process off parent search becomes vital.
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Parent Search (for left behind children)
If you are 18 years or older, and whether you are a victim of child abduction, relocation, parental alienation or have never met your biological parent before, the decision to find a missing parent can be emotionally challenging.
For many young adults who attempt to do this themselves, find themselves likely to have not succeeded, and this can present a sense of hopelessness.
Our Parent Search team are experienced in locating missing or estranged parents. With our expertise investigation team and the Parenting Together Apart for Parents NOT Together Parent Search team, the process is properly case managed to ensure there is care and preparation for our young adults in chance that the missing parent decides they do not want to be found.
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Child Reconnect Not For Profit Organization
If you are 18-28 years old, you may qualify for our grant support to locate your lost parent. See link to see if you qualify.
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Understanding the Legal Processes Recovery Orders and what they mean
If you are in Australia, and your child has been missing for not more than six weeks, your first point of call is to contact a lawyer to sort an Australian Recovery Order.
https://www.fcfcoa.gov.au/fl/children/recovery-orders
A recovery order is an order of the Court which can require a child to be returned to you: (Please check with your country of location and state for the Recovery Order laws)
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a parent of the child
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a person who has a parenting order which states the child is to live with, spend time with, or communicate with, that person, or
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a person who has parental responsibility for the child.
See section 67Q of the Family Law Act 1975.
You can apply for a recovery order if you are:
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a person whom the child lives with, spends time with, or communicates with, according to a parenting order
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a person who has parental responsibility for the child according to a parenting order
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a grandparent of the child, or
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a person concerned with the care, welfare, and development of the child. For example, you may be the person with whom the child lives or spends time with, even though there is no parenting order that states this.
If your child has been missing beyond six weeks, it will be too late for you to seek a Recovery Order, but this does not mean that all is hopeless.
If your child is not located, you may also return to court to issue a location order, Commonwealth order, and/or publication order.​
What is a location order?
A location order is an order of the Court which requires a person to provide to the Court, information they have, or which they obtain, about a child (see section 67J(1) of the Family Law Act 1975).
What is a Commonwealth information order?
A Commonwealth information order is a type of location order which requires the Secretary of a Commonwealth (Federal) Government department, or an authority of a Commonwealth instrumentality, to provide to the Court information in its records about the location of a child (see sections 67J(1)(b) and 67J(2) of the Family Law Act 1975).
An application for a Commonwealth information order usually needs to be served on the person to whom the proposed order is to be directed (in other words, the person who will need to act on it, such as the Secretary of the relevant department) at least seven days before the Court hearing (see section 67N(3) of the Family Law Act 1975 and regulation 12CB of the Family Law Regulations 1984).
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A Commonwealth information order stays in force for 12 months.
My child has been taken overseas without my permission
If your child has been taken from their home country without your permission, and without the authorisation of a court, you may be able to get assistance under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. See Relocation and travel for more information