Define: Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA)
UCCJEA stands for "Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act." When legal issues arise regarding child custody, it can be difficult to determine what state has the authority to issue initial and subsequent orders regarding child custody. This is particularly the case when one parent moves to another state after an initial child custody determination is made by the courts, or when two parents decide to separate and the children move out-of-state to live with that parent. In order to address and resolve confusion, all 50 states have enacted some form of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), a statute that was designed to clarify and simplify the determination of what state has the authority to address an initial child custody determination or modification to the initial order. Chapter 518D of the Minnesota Statutes is Minnesota's version of the UCCJEA. Since child custody and divorce proceedings are dealt with by individual states, a mechanism was needed to address interstate child custody issues; the UCCJEA does just that.
For instance, what would happen if a married couple has two children and resided in Minnesota for five years, then the parties separated informally and the mother and the children moved to Wisconsin where they resided for five months? Would Minnesota or Wisconsin have authority and jurisdiction to issue a custody order (through a divorce proceeding or otherwise)? As provided in detail below, in this case, Minnesota would have jurisdiction under the UCCJEA, because Minnesota remains the "home state." This is the case since the children resided in Minnesota for a continuous six months, and since they had not yet resided in Wisconsin for the same six month period.
UCCJEA Home State
The UCCJEA defines a minor child’s “home state” as the state in which a child lived with a parent for at least six consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody or divorce proceeding. If a child is less than six months old, the home state is the state where the child lived from birth. A period of temporary absence would still be considered part of the six-month period.
As defined above, to be the children’s home state the children would have to reside in Minnesota for six consecutive months prior to the commencement of a custody proceeding. Alternatively, Minnesota would be considered the home state if the children are absent from the State, but lived in Minnesota for six consecutive months within six months before the commencement of the custody or divorce proceeding - as long as a parent still lives in Minnesota. This would be the scenario above (the children resided in Minnesota for over six months, then moved to Wisconsin, but were only in Wisconsin for five months and one of the parents remained in Minnesota).
When There is no Home State
What happens when no state can be considered a child’s home state? If a child custody decision needs to be made and a child does not have a home state (per the UCCJEA definition), then the UCCJEA requires us to look at whether the child and the parents have a “significant connection” with Minnesota or some other state (beyond a mere physical presence) and whether “substantial evidence” is available in Minnesota or some other state concerning the child's care, protection, training, and personal relationships. In such a case, if it is determined that there are significant connections and is substantial evidence with Minnesota over some other state, then Minnesota would be able to move forward with issuing a custody order consistent with the UCCJEA.
If there are significant connections and substantial evidence in two states then the UCCJEA requires us to look at which state has the most convenient forum to decide child custody. The factors that the Court considers when deciding the most convenient or appropriate forum include:
whether domestic violence has occurred and is likely to continue in the future and which state could best protect the parties and the child
the length of time the child has resided outside this state
the distance between the court in this state and the court in the state that would assume jurisdiction
the relative financial circumstances of the parties
any agreement of the parties as to which state should assume jurisdiction
the nature and location of the evidence required to resolve the pending litigation, including testimony of the child
the ability of the court of each state to decide the issue expeditiously and the procedures necessary to present the evidence
the familiarity of the court of each state with the facts and issues in the pending litigation.
After reviewing and assessing all of these factors, the UCCJEA provides that the judges and courts in the two different states may communicate with each other to determine which state should exercise jurisdiction of the child custody matter. In practice, this is oftentimes what does in fact occur, which will lead to one of the states dismissing the custody action in that state so that it may proceed forward in the other state.
Contact an Attorney for Advice and Representation for Any Interstate Custody Matter
If you and the parent to your child or children reside in different states and you have not yet been to court to determine custody or parenting time, it is very important that you speak with and hire an attorney to guide you through the process of determining where to commence the custody or divorce proceeding. Or, if the parent to your child or children commenced a divorce or custody proceeding in a state other then where you reside and you think it was done inappropriately, you should contact an attorney for advice on whether a separate divorce or custody proceeding should be commenced in the state where you reside. In such a case, the courts in the two states would determine where the custody action should remain. The attorneys at Blahnik, Prchal & Stoll, PLLC regularly handle interstate child custody matters that involve the UCCJEA.