033- Application of the Convention of 1902 concerning the Guardianship of Infants (Netherlands vs Sweden)
On July 10th, 1957, the Kingdom of the Netherlands filed an application instituting proceedings before the International Court of Justice (ICJ) against Sweden regarding a dispute concerning the application of national rules and international conventions on the guardianship of minors. In the present case, a Dutch national domiciled in Sweden had been placed and maintained under the national system of protective education despite various appeals from the minor’s father and guardian.
The Netherlands argued that the decisions prescribing and maintaining the protective education measure were not in conformity with Sweden’s obligations under the 1902 Hague Convention on the Guardianship of Infants.
The Court ruled on the merits of the case in its judgment of November 28th, 1958 and decided that Swedish national law and the 1902 Hague Convention were dealing with different scenarii. Therefore, Sweden could not have failed to meet its international commitments under the Convention since the Convention did not extend to the issue of child protection as defined in Swedish law.
This summary is provided for informational purposes only, does not involve the responsibility of Dome and should in no way be used as a substitute for a careful reading of the judgment and order of the case.
