In Brief
A mother filed a guardianship petition for her children born from a marriage in the USA, with one child born abroad and another in India. The Family Court dismissed the petition relying on forum convenience and comity of courts doctrines, reasoning that US courts had stronger connections to the matter. The Supreme Court reversed this order, holding that neither comity nor forum convenience can serve as a bar to jurisdiction in guardianship cases. The paramount consideration must be the child's best interests and welfare, which cannot be subordinated to procedural or jurisdictional principles. The court remitted the matter to the Family Court for expeditious decision on merits.
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