In Azerbaijan, court cases related to problems with alimony payments are widespread. The number of individuals imprisoned for failing to comply with court decisions on alimony is also steadily increasing. In some instances, lawsuits are even filed seeking to strip non-paying parents of their parental rights.

Bizimyol.info reports that the mother of H. Akhundov, born in 2013, filed such a claim in court. In her petition, she stated that although she and the child’s father were never officially married, they lived together for some time. Their relationship later deteriorated, and they separated. In 2020, by a decision of the Nizami District Court, the father was ordered to pay a monthly alimony of 170 manats. However, he never made any payments and showed no interest in the child’s fate.

The Yasamal District Court initially rejected the mother’s request to deprive the father of his parental rights on the grounds of non-payment. The court noted that the father had left Azerbaijan in 2018 through the airport and, according to information from the State Border Service, had not returned since. The court did not rule out the possibility that the father might have been unaware of the alimony order, as the ruling was issued in 2020—two years after he left the country.

The mother, determined to have the father stripped of his parental rights, filed an appeal. The Baku Court of Appeal upheld her claim. The appellate ruling stated that even if the father had been unaware of the alimony decision, he was nevertheless obligated to remain informed about his child’s wellbeing and to contribute financially to the child’s upbringing. Over the years, he had failed to fulfill this duty.

On this basis, the Court of Appeal ruled to revoke the father’s parental rights.

Aytən, Bizimyol.info