Background
Vladimír Zavřel and his wife had a son. However, his wife left the family home in 2001, taking the six-year-old boy with her.
Soon, she prevented Vladimír from seeing his son.
A Czech court had ordered that it was in the child’s best interests to see his father, and that the two should have time together on a regular basis.
Vladimír tried to get this court order enforced. However, the authorities failed to put it into effect. They did almost nothing to allow Vladimír to re-establish contact with his boy.
With no other options left, Vladimír took his case to the European Court of Human Rights. By this time, he had not seen his son for over two years.