A 10-year-old girl will find out next week whether she can remain in Malta or will be forced to leave and live with her biological mother in the UK.

Ella Bridge’s father, Richard, started a legal battle when the girl’s mother, Nicki Lee, successfully argued in a British court that her permission should have been sought before her daughter was taken away from the UK.

The Family Court in Malta ordered that Ella returns to the UK and, despite an appeal, this was thrown out on a legal technicality because it was filed two days late.

The father’s lawyer, Aron Mifsud Bonnici, filed a constitutional application claiming that Ella’s rights had been breached. He managed to secure an interim suspension of the order, which was extended yesterday.

Dr Mifsud Bonnici yesterday asked the court to appoint a psychologist who could assess the effects of removing the child and placing her in a foreign country.

He sustained his argument by noting that the European Court of Human Rights had “chastised” Constitutional Courts across the board when they failed to appoint psychologists in such cases.

However, Mr Justice Joseph Azzopardi dismissed Dr Mifsud Bonnici’s request, arguing that his main concern was the child and that judgement had to be handed down by next week.

In another request, the lawyer asked for a children’s advocate to be appointed to defend the girl’s interest. In the proceedings, his client was accused of undermining the child’s interest but Mr Bridge was in good faith and this request proved it, Dr Mifsud Bonnici argued.

This request too was turned down by the judge, who said that he would listen to the child face-to-face and that was enough.

In one more request, Dr Mifsud Bonnici asked for the hearing to be postponed by four days because a close family member of his was due to undergo major surgery on the day of the hearing.

Again, the judge rejected the request and set the hearing for Wednesday.

The judge will hear the girl in his private chambers before the case starts.