Child welfare: an approach based on private international law to ensure the best interests of the child

Abstract

The article analyzed the role of the Private International Derecho as a key instrument to guarantee the superior interests of the child, the guiding principle enshrined in the Convention on the Derechos del Niño. From this framework, the objective consisted of critically examining several judicial pronouncements that, due to the indeterminate and abstract nature of the principle, incorporate potentially incompatible valuations in their application. The investigation addresses the main challenges that arise in transnational contexts, especially in situations where it is necessary to consider rights in conflict, such as the right to identity, to intimacy and to family life. From a methodological perspective, the study is based on a critical legal analysis aimed at identifying tensions between formal and substantive approaches in resolving international controversies that involve minors. The results support that traditional mechanisms of conflict between laws and jurisdiction must be reinterpreted from a material perspective, oriented towards the effective protection of children's well-being, overcoming a strictly territorial or formalistic vision. It was concluded that it is necessary to adopt an integrative analysis framework that prioritizes the concrete circumstances of the minor and his family environment, further promoting strengthened judicial and administrative cooperation between States as an essential element to ensure real and cross-border protection of children's rights.