Cross-border child relocation cases are among the most difficult issues in family law. Commentators across the globe disagree on the interpretation of the child's best interests and the relevance of adults' autonomy in this context. As relocations touch upon free movement - the foundation of European Union law - there is an increasing interest among scholars and practitioners alike in the influence of EU law on child relocation. However, considering the EU’s scope of competence in family law matters and the limited jurisprudence of the Court of Justice on such issues, many questions regarding the reach of EU law have remained open.

This is the first monograph to investigate the dynamics of Europeanisation of cross-border child relocation law. What is the scope and nature of EU law's influence - both current and prospective - on cross-border child relocation? What are its effects on national legal systems? It analyses the European legal framework of child relocation and harmonisation prospects in the field. It demonstrates the limitations of the legal pressures potentially exerted by the EU, considering the nature of its competence, but simultaneously conceptualises EU law’s influences from a constructivist perspective. Free movement constitutes the main paradigm of EU law and a defining feature of its community, shifting the scope of autonomy granted to it by its members. Hence, a mixture of traditional values and new ways of life might lead to new dilemmas regarding the assessment of children's and adults’ interests in child relocation cases.