Filed: Aug. 25, 2016
Latest Update: Aug. 25, 2016
Summary: ORDER VIRGINIA M. HERNANDEZ COVINGTON , District Judge . On August 24, 2016, Petitioner filed a Verified Petition for Return of Children to Panama. (Doc. #1). The Court entered its Order Granting Temporary Restraining Order Under the Hague Convention without notice on August 25, 2016 (Doc. #2), and set a hearing on the Verified Petition for September 12, 2016, at 1:30 P.M., in Courtroom 14B of the Sam M. Gibbons United States Courthouse, 801 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33602. Pursuan
Summary: ORDER VIRGINIA M. HERNANDEZ COVINGTON , District Judge . On August 24, 2016, Petitioner filed a Verified Petition for Return of Children to Panama. (Doc. #1). The Court entered its Order Granting Temporary Restraining Order Under the Hague Convention without notice on August 25, 2016 (Doc. #2), and set a hearing on the Verified Petition for September 12, 2016, at 1:30 P.M., in Courtroom 14B of the Sam M. Gibbons United States Courthouse, 801 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33602. Pursuant..
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ORDER
VIRGINIA M. HERNANDEZ COVINGTON, District Judge.
On August 24, 2016, Petitioner filed a Verified Petition for Return of Children to Panama. (Doc. #1). The Court entered its Order Granting Temporary Restraining Order Under the Hague Convention without notice on August 25, 2016 (Doc. #2), and set a hearing on the Verified Petition for September 12, 2016, at 1:30 P.M., in Courtroom 14B of the Sam M. Gibbons United States Courthouse, 801 N. Florida Avenue, Tampa, Florida 33602.
Pursuant to Rule 65 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, every temporary restraining order issued without notice
expires at the time after entry—not to exceed 14 days— that the Court sets, unless before that time the court, for good cause, extends it for a like period or the adverse party consents to a longer extension.
Fed. R. Civ. P. 65(b)(2).
The Court finds that there is good cause to extend the Temporary Restraining Order beyond fourteen days, up to and including September 12, 2016. The September 12, 2016, hearing date was selected by the Court to provide enough time for the Petitioner to locate and serve the Respondent. Furthermore, this hearing date provides greater time for Respondent to retain counsel and for counsel to prepare for the hearing. Finally, as Petitioner resides in Panama, extending the length of the Temporary Restraining Order allows the Petitioner to arrange travel to the United States.
It is the Court's experience that providing more time before a hearing increases the quality and clarity of the parties' arguments on the merits. Well-prepared counsel facilitate the swift adjudication of international child abduction cases, as intended by the Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, Done at the Hague on October 20, 1980. See Ruiz v. Tenorio, 392 F.3d 1247, 1250 (11th Cir. 2004)("The convention is intended as a rapid remedy for the left-behind parent.").
Accordingly, it is
ORDERED, ADJUDGED, and DECREED:
The Order Granting Temporary Restraining Order Under the Hague Convention (Doc. # 2) will remain in effect up to and including the September 12, 2016, hearing.
DONE and ORDERED.
