Malawi's high court has allowed human rights groups to challenge Madonna’s interim adoption of a one-year-old Malawian boy, opening the door for a full judicial review of a case which has attracted worldwide headlines.
A coalition of 67 rights groups had sought permission to lodge a court challenge against the interim adoption, which saw the 48-year-old star whisk one-year old David Banda from a Malawi orphanage to her London home in October.
The rights groups had argued that the speedy granting of the interim adoption order violated Malawi's decades-old ban on adoptions by non-residents.
Judge Andrew Nyirenda said the rights groups, who were later joined by Malawi's Human Rights Commission, had demonstrated there was a case to be heard.
The ruling marked a setback for Madonna, who visited Malawi with her husband, film maker Guy Ritchie, in October on what they said was a humanitarian mission to help Malawi orphans.
Her plans to adopt David Banda were quickly complicated by the appearance of the boy's father Yohane Banda, who said he had not been properly advised of the singer's plan to take his son away permanently.
David Banda had lived in an orphanage since the death of his mother.
Madonna already has two children, daughter Lourdes, 10 and son Rocco, 6.
