Kelly Rutherford has had another bid to regain custody of her children thrown out.

The 'Gossip Girl' actress' kids Hermes, eight, and Helena, six, had been staying with her in New York over the summer holidays and although she claims she was awarded sole custody of them earlier this year, she was ordered to return them to their father, her ex-husband Daniel Giersch, in Monaco last week, prompting her to file a federal lawsuit to get them back just hours after the verdict.

However, according to the New York Post newspaper, court records show a federal judge threw out the suit the same day, insisting the matter should stay in the state system.

Kelly's attorney Wendy Murphy slammed the federal judge's decision.

She said: ''The federal court's decision was obviously incorrect, and we are appealing.''

Kelly recently admitted she felt the ruling was a ''done deal'' as soon as she arrived in court.

Speaking about the hearing, which was held after the 46-year-old actress refused to fly her children back to Monaco as previously agreed, and Daniel, whose U.S. visa was revoked a few years ago, accused her of child abduction, she said: ''He was in communication with them every day. You know, I talked to my lawyers, they were saying, this is concerning on many levels.

''I walked into a courtroom where everything felt like it was already done. It was a done deal. And his mother was sitting there with plane tickets, smiling, ready to take them. Nobody had heard our argument.''

The actress previously branded Judge Ellen Gesmer's recent ruling ''shocking, illegal and abusive'' and accused her of breaking the law by ordering her to send her children, who were both born in America, back to Monaco.