Background
This case involves a six-year child custody dispute between Sarah S.C. Moreau and Andrew Christopher White, who moved from Texas to Canada with their two children. After a period of dormancy in the Texas proceedings, the children became integrated into life in Canada. White later retained the children in Texas, prompting Moreau to file a petition under the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction. The district court ordered the children returned to Canada and issued a preliminary injunction to stop further state court litigation and direct the Canadian courts to decide the custody matter.
The court’s reasoning
The Fifth Circuit reviewed the district court’s determination of habitual residence under a clear error standard, finding the children were sufficiently integrated in Canada to be considered habitually resident there. The court held that White’s retention of the children in Texas violated Moreau’s custody rights under Canadian law. Regarding affirmative defenses, the court found that Moreau’s conduct did not establish consent to the Texas court’s final adjudication and declined to apply judicial estoppel as an extra-treaty defense to the Convention’s return remedy. Finally, the court vacated the preliminary injunction because directing a foreign court to act and enjoining state proceedings to enforce that direction violated principles of international comity.
We AFFIRM the district court’s judgment ordering the return of the children to Canada but VACATE its preliminary injunction.
Moreau v. White, 25-40031 (5th Cir. May 15, 2026)
The dissent
The majority’s interpretation of consent is ultimately inconsistent with the Hague Convention, and its disregard of judicial estoppel condones duplicitous conduct in court proceedings.
Edith Hollan Jones
What it means going forward
The decision mandates the return of the children to Canada as their country of habitual residence but removes the federal court’s order compelling the Canadian courts to adjudicate the dispute, leaving the custody resolution to the appropriate state and foreign tribunals.
Podcast (federal-narrative-summaries): Play in new window | Download