Supreme Court: In Italy, the court transferred the child to the father and deprived the mother of parental rights, but the decision cannot be enforced in Ukraine

The issue of recognition and enforcement of foreign court decisions is becoming increasingly relevant for Ukrainian judicial practice. Due to the mass migration of Ukrainians, the increase in international marriages, and family disputes, situations increasingly arise where decisions regarding children, parental rights, or custody are made abroad but require legal consequences in Ukraine.

In the Supreme Court ruling of the Civil Cassation Court dated June 17, 2026, in case No. 495/8640/21, the issue of granting permission for the enforcement of a decision of the Court of Italy was considered, by which the mother was deprived of parental rights regarding the child, the child was placed under the father's custody, the procedure for maintaining family contacts was determined, and court costs were recovered.

Circumstances of the case

An Italian citizen applied to the Ukrainian court with a petition to grant permission for enforcement of the decision of the Rome Court of Appeal dated February 18, 2020.

By this decision, the mother was deprived of parental rights regarding the minor son, the child was placed under the custody of the father residing in Italy, the child's permanent residence was determined to be with the father, and competent social services were entrusted to ensure the child's contact with the mother and provide support to the child and father.

The mother was also ordered to pay 8,000 euros in procedural costs, excluding VAT, legal aid costs, and general expenses of 15%.

In October 2021, the Supreme Court of Cassation of the Italian Republic upheld this decision.

The court of first instance granted the petition and allowed enforcement of the foreign court decision.

The Odessa Court of Appeal overturned this decision and denied the petition. The court reasoned that the child has lived in Ukraine for over eight years, has adapted to the new environment, and returning to Italy could pose a risk of psychological harm.

The father appealed the appellate court's ruling to the Supreme Court.

Position of the Supreme Court

The court noted that no international treaties on legal assistance and legal relations in civil and family matters have been concluded between Ukraine and the Italian Republic; therefore, recognition and enforcement of foreign court decisions depend on the principle of reciprocity. If recognition and enforcement depend on reciprocity, it is presumed to exist unless proven otherwise.

Additionally, Ukraine and the Italian Republic are contracting states to the Convention on Jurisdiction, Applicable Law, Recognition, Enforcement, and Cooperation in Respect of Parental Responsibility and Measures for the Protection of Children dated October 19, 1996.

At the same time, foreign court decisions are recognized and enforced in Ukraine if their recognition and enforcement are provided for by an international treaty, the consent to be bound by which is given by the Verkhovna Rada of Ukraine, or on the basis of reciprocity.

The Supreme Court emphasized that the foreign court decision contains both pecuniary (recovery of procedural costs, legal aid costs, and general expenses) and non-pecuniary elements (deprivation of parental rights, determination of parental custody, ensuring the child's relationship (contact) with the mother, as well as support for the child and parents).

The court pointed out that the difference between granting permission for enforcement of a foreign court decision, as provided in Chapter 1, and recognition of foreign court decisions in Ukraine, as provided in Chapter 2 of Section IX of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine, is that in the first case, the national court permits enforcement of the foreign court decision and issues an enforcement order to be executed according to the law.

In the second case, the national court only recognizes the foreign court decision as a fact or legal status that has already occurred abroad, without enforcing that decision.

The court drew attention to the nature of the decision and noted that the possibility of implementing a foreign court decision in Ukraine depends on the nature of the decision.

Decisions of foreign courts that require enforcement include decisions on debt recovery; alimony recovery; and damage compensation. That is, those of a pecuniary nature. Foreign court decisions of a non-pecuniary nature that do not require enforcement may include decisions on divorce; establishment of paternity; establishment of custody, etc.

The court emphasized that when deciding on the legalization of a foreign decision, the national court must determine whether it concerns an obligation that can be realized through enforcement procedures or a legal fact or legal status.

The Supreme Court indicated that if a foreign decision establishes or changes a person's legal status, parental responsibility, custody, the child's place of residence, or another family-legal status, it may not always be subject to enforcement in Ukraine.

However, in each case, the court must determine whether the decision contains a specific obligation of the debtor that can be realized through enforcement procedures or whether it concerns only a legal fact or status subject to recognition.

Applying these approaches to the circumstances of the case, the Supreme Court concluded that the Italian court decision is not subject to enforcement regarding the exercise of parental rights.

The Supreme Court stated that the decision of the Rome Court of Appeal (juvenile chamber – civil chamber) of the Italian Republic is not subject to enforcement regarding the issue of exercising parental rights over the minor (deprivation of parental rights; determination of parental responsibility; ensuring the child's relationship with the mother in Italy; support of the child and father).

In this part, the foreign court decision may be recognized as a fact or legal status without enforcement, in accordance with Chapter 2 of Section IX of the Civil Procedure Code of Ukraine. However, the applicant did not request this in the petition submitted to the national court.

At the same time, the court noted that the decision also contains pecuniary claims subject to a different legal regime.

The Supreme Court indicated that the decision of the Rome Court of Appeal also contains pecuniary awards and in this part is subject to enforcement, in particular regarding payment of procedural costs in favor of the appellant in the amount of 8,000 euros, excluding VAT and legal aid costs, as well as general expenses of 15%.

Separately, the Supreme Court disagreed with the first instance court's approach to determining the hryvnia equivalent of the amount awarded by the foreign court.

The court noted that determining such an equivalent effectively changes the operative part of the foreign court decision and does not comply with the procedure for enforcing court decisions when calculating debt in foreign currency.

Thus, the Supreme Court partially satisfied the father's cassation appeal. The court changed the reasons for denying permission to enforce the Italian court decision regarding the exercise of parental rights, stating that such provisions are not subject to enforcement but may be implemented through recognition of the foreign court decision as a legal fact or legal status.

At the same time, the court annulled the appellate court's ruling denying enforcement of the decision on recovery of court costs and upheld the first instance court's decision in this part.

Thus, the court confirmed that when resolving issues of legalization of foreign court decisions, their pecuniary and non-pecuniary components must be separately assessed, as different procedural mechanisms for their implementation in Ukraine are provided.

Additionally, read about another important Supreme Court position on disputes involving children with an international element, where the Court agreed that the British court should determine the place of residence of a child who has lived in the United Kingdom for two years.

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