Legal assistance

The Ministry of Justice and Public Security and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs provide guidance in child abduction cases. There is often also a need for legal assistance from a lawyer/legal practitioner.

Lawyers
You will need to decide yourself whether you require a lawyer. Some countries (not Norway) require you to use a lawyer when the case is being dealt with by a court or administrative body. In particularly complex cases, a Norwegian and a foreign lawyer may be required. This applies particularly where a child has been abducted to/from a country that is not a part to one of the two child abduction conventions.

Lawyers in Norway
The Ministry of Justice and Public Security has established a list of lawyers with expertise in and knowledge of child abduction. You will find the list, contact details and CVs under List of lawyers in child abduction cases. You can read more about the arrangement Background for the list of lawyers.

You are free to choose a lawyer who is not on the list. In these cases, we advise you to contact the Norwegian Bar Association.

The Norwegian Bar Association
Juristenes Hus
Kristian Augusts gate 9
0164 Oslo
Tel.: +47 22 03 50 50
Fax: +47 22 11 53 25
E-mail: dnapost@jus.no
Website: http://www.advokatforeningen.no

Lawyers abroad
All Norwegian diplomatic and consular missions keep lists of local lawyers that may be used in child abduction cases and they can help you find a suitable lawyer. The website of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs contains an Overview of Norwegian diplomatic and consular missions (only in Norwegian) and The Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ portal for country and travel information, http://www.landsider.no/ (Norwegian only).

Covering legal fees
As a general rule, you must cover your own legal fees. However, you may apply to have these fees covered through the free legal aid scheme. You can read more about this under Financial assistance.