Q: Hello. I need to change jurisdiction from FL to OR. How do I do this?
My daughter and I moved here 2 years ago with my ex's permission. He is now threatening to take me back to court so I would like some help in what both our rights are. Thank you very much.
A:
The fact that a Florida Court originally heard your case and did the orders about your child's custody isn't critical to whether you can live in Oregon or not. If your husband still lives in Florida the Florida court will normally continue to have jurisdiction over the case and hear any motions that are filed. This is how the UCCJEA Act would dictate the jurisdiction of the case - usually the first court to rule on custody or parenting time remains the primary court for all related matters. Given that your husband was OK with the move and the child now lives here and is presumably doing well, the Florida Court may well continue custody with you living here, but modify the parenting time plan for a plan that allows father more time with his daughter during school breaks to make up for the distance. I would talk to a Florida lawyer about this before doing anything else.
If neither you nor your husband currently live in Florida then it may be time to move the case to Oregon where the child now resides. The UCCJEA allows the case to be transferred when none of the parties live in the original State or there is some other compelling reason to transfer the case, such as all the witnesses who can testify as to how the child is doing live in the new State of residence. You should speak to an Oregon Attorney about filing papers on Oregon to do this. It will basically involve the Oregon Judge having a phone conference with the Florida Judge.
A: If your ex still resides in FL, then FL still has exclusive continuing jurisdiction to decide custody and parenting time rights. You would have to ask the FL court to decide whether to transfer the case to OR. If your ex does not reside in FL anymore, then OR has jurisdiction to decide custody and parenting time rights, and you don't need the FL court's permission. I suggest that you file a certified or exemplified copy of your FL judgment with the OR court so that you have an OR case to which the FL action can be transferred. This is a complex area of the law, so you should confer with an attorney to get detailed information regarding your options.
Justia Ask a Lawyer is a forum for consumers to get answers to basic legal questions. Any information sent through Justia Ask a Lawyer is not secure and is done so on a non-confidential basis only.
The use of this website to ask questions or receive answers does not create an attorney–client relationship between you and Justia, or between you and any attorney who receives your information or responds to your questions, nor is it intended to create such a relationship. Additionally, no responses on this forum constitute legal advice, which must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. You should not act upon information provided in Justia Ask a Lawyer without seeking professional counsel from an attorney admitted or authorized to practice in your jurisdiction. Justia assumes no responsibility to any person who relies on information contained on or received through this site and disclaims all liability in respect to such information.
Justia cannot guarantee that the information on this website (including any legal information provided by an attorney through this service) is accurate, complete, or up-to-date. While we intend to make every attempt to keep the information on this site current, the owners of and contributors to this site make no claims, promises or guarantees about the accuracy, completeness or adequacy of the information contained in or linked to from this site.
