Garofalo, Carmine

Specialized Experience:

Since 1995, Attorney Gardner has worked or advised on approximately 200 Hague Convention or other family abduction cases. She routinely works to return children under the Hague Convention on Child Abduction and related family law issues (including divorce and support), and consults in cases in which there is no bi-lateral treaty. She has represented and consulted with attorneys, private organizations, foreign governmental agencies and parents in cases involving: Aruba, Australia, Canada, Chile, China, Colombia, Costa Rica, Dominican Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, England, France, Germany, Greece, Guatemala, Holland, Honduras, Hong Kong, Honduras, Hungary, India, Ireland, Israel, Italy, Jamaica, Japan, Jordan, Mauritius, Mexico, Netherlands, New Zealand, Nigeria. Northern Ireland, Panama, Philippines, Poland, Portugal, Puerto Rico, Qatar, Russia, Saudi Arabia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Syria, Scotland, U.A..E. and Venezuela.

She also represents clients involved in interstate custody litigation and has appeared in jurisdictions in various other state courts and in federal courts to represent clients in these matters. This litigation usually centers on the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act.

On many occasions, Attorney Gardner has provided her services without charge or at a substantially reduced fee to parents whose children have been lost through international parental abduction, and Attorney Gardner provides her services gratis through North Penn Legal Services to clients who meet their (legal aid) financial qualifications.

Attorney Gardner maintains a small practice in Bethlehem, with a focus on family law matters. She has been responsible for the return of many children to their parents after the wrongful abduction by the other parent. Working with families to be reunited with their children around the globe has brought an international dimension to the legal profession in Bethlehem.

Governmental/Private Activities:

1. Private Law Delegate representing the United States at the Third Meeting of the Special Commission to Discuss the Operation of the Hague Convention on Child Abduction, at The Hague, March 17-21, 1997.
2. Routinely consulted by the Office of Children's Issues, Consular Affairs, U.S. Department of State regarding abduction cases.
3. Work closely with the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children, representing parents whose children are abducted into the United States from other countries
4. Resource for REUNITE, the United Kingdom's private organization specializing in parental child abduction
5. Member, Attorney Advisory Committee, National Center for Missing and Exploited Children – attorney advisory committee on issues of abducted children
6. Board Member, Committee for Missing Children, an international organization providing support for parents of abducted children, with offices in Lawrenceville, Georgia, USA and Langenselbold, Germany
7. Member, ICAAN, International Child Abduction Attorney Network, serving as pro bono (free) attorney for parents of abducted children, as part of project underwritten by the ABA Center on Children and the Law and the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
8. Advisory Panel, Rachel Foundation, Texas for Reunification of children with families after estrangement or abduction
9. Media Contact: Cited in articles in England, Northern Ireland, Germany and throughout United States, on abduction issues, including AP articles, feature stories, and other references to abduction issues
10. Media Contacts: Television appearances (including Nancy Grace Show on CNN in Spring 2007), Radio interviews regarding abduction issues, and newspaper interviews in US and abroad
11. Consulted by other attorneys throughout the United States who have questions regarding abduction issues, offering ongoing assistance to practitioners handling these matters. Receive calls on a weekly basis.
12. Cases normally involve coordinating efforts of local/state police, Federal Bureau of Investigation, Interpol, and other law enforcement agencies to facilitate return of abducted children and capture of parents who have kidnapped the children.
13. Prepared and Submitted Affidavits of Law and Opinion letters to other attorneys and to various courts on specific cases involving the risks of child abduction, both in the United States and abroad.

LEGAL ACHIEVEMENTS:

Testimony, House Democratic Policy Committee, Public Health and Violence Prevention Task Force Hearing, September 11, 2007

Testimony/Remarks to Subcommittee on Family Law of the Pennsylvania House Judiciary Committee, in support of House Bill 2398, August 28, 2006

Participant – "ICARA at 15" – Symposium with the United States Department of State, Washington, D.C., participant with other Attorneys, Judges, and Governmental Authorities to discuss possible changes and improvements to the International Child Abduction Remedies Act, codified at 42 U.S.C. § 11601 et seq., December 2003

Expert Witness: cases in Pennsylvania; Florida, Colorado, Maryland and New York on issues of child custody, jurisdiction and child abduction

Expert Testimony on International Family Law Cases and Abduction, and the Hague Convention on the International Aspects of Child Abduction – Schuh v. Wrestler, No. 2007-5219, Court of Common Pleas of Centre County, PA – July 29, 2008

Expert Testimony on International Child Abduction – Diaz v. Solis-Diaz, District Court, City and County of Denver, Colorado, 08-DR-1201; Conference Call with Counsel and Guardian July 11, 2008, and Expert Testimony proposed for August 11, 2008.

Expert Testimony in Santos v. Santos, C-0048-CV-2003-07570, Northampton County, PA in 2006 on abduction prevention measures between US and Philippines

Expert Testimony in Bochkarev v. Bochkarev, Montgomery County, PA divorce/custody case involving abduction prevention measures between US and Russia, April 8, 2010

Expert Testimony in In the Matter of Lynne M. Airi and Shashi B. Airi, Cheshire County Superior Court, Docket No. 08-M-0407, State of New Hampshire, August 18, 2010

Consulted: local case in Lehigh and Northampton Counties