London - The British couple at the centre of a trans-Atlantic custody battle over twins adopted on the Internet said yesterday they would appeal against an Arkansas court ruling that the girls' future be decided in Missouri courts.
Mr Alan Kilshaw, who, with his wife Judith, adopted the twins last year, said in a television interview that he had consulted briefly with his Arkansas attorney who advised lodging an appeal. "The initial indications are that we have very good grounds for an appeal in Arkansas and we will be launching our appeal at the earliest opportunity," Mr Kilshaw told NBC's Today show. "We were very disappointed at the ruling."
An Arkansas judge ruled on Tuesday that the twin girls, adopted twice through an Internet agency, belonged to neither a Californian couple nor the British couple claiming them and that a Missouri court should decide custody. The judge asked that the girls, now under foster care in Britain, be sent back to the United States.