CENTRAL AUTHORITY FUNCTIONS
Under the Hague and European Conventions the Minister for Justice acts as the Central Authority and her functions are
supported by the Scottish Executive Justice
Department. The Scottish Executive is entirely
neutral in the process.
The
responsibilities of the Central Authority
are set forth in Articles 7,12 and 21 of the Hague Convention and Articles 3 and 5 of the European
Convention. The Central Authority for
Scotland 's role is that of an active facilitator. It
serves as an information point between Contracting States,
solicitors and members of the public.
The Central Authority advises on the working
of the Convention and provides updates on the status of
cases to involved parties.
The Central Authority in the country to which the
child has been abducted has the primary responsibility for
processing an application. The Central Authority
for
Scotland will arrange for applications to be transmitted to
other countries and if necessary arrange for
translations. Broadly speaking, there should be no
costs involved in pursuing a return or seeking contact
under either Convention.