Request for a good #lawyer, ideally with expertise in #custody and marriage laws in #Spain as well as wellfare law in #Germany.

A female friend (German citizen) of mine lives in Spain in a broken marriage with a young child. She wants to leave her husband and go back to Germany with her child. Problem is she doesn’t currently have any income of her own, but at least a depression, if not other health issues, so doubtful whether she can support herself and her child financially on her own. The shared finances in the marriage are muddled.

The separation discussion has not yet reached a stage where things are only discussed in court, but she definitely needs some advice what her rights are and what agreements she can and can‘t make to be eligible for social benefits in Germany.

Any recommendations?

@cocoafrog Can’t help with that specific question, but my sister, who’s a lawyer in Australia that deals with child protection stuff, would yell at me if I didn’t mention the Hague Convention and its definition of “habitual residence”.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hague_Convention_on_the_Civil_Aspects_of_International_Child_Abduction

Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction - Wikipedia

@justkwin thanks! Our understanding is that she cannot move together with their child without his permission, which gives him considerable power in the separation negotiations.