Legal Question in Family Law in Louisiana
Which State has Jurisdiction
My Question is rather long but needed , I hope that your answer will be forthcoming . I was Divorced in 1988 , my wife and I moved from Louisiana to Michigan with our 9month old son in 1987 .she and our son lived with me for 3 months in Michigan , then she decided to leave me andreturn with our son back south . about 4 weeks later she toldme on the phone that she wanted a divorce . I filed for divorce two weeks later in Michigan , we were divorced in Jan. 1988 . I remained a resident of Michigan for 5 years from the time her and my son left mein 87'' . In March 2001 , I received sole legal and sole physical custody of our son who was 14at the time , he is now almost 17 , I was again awarded a judgement in Michigan , So my question is , which state wouldhave jurisdiction over divorce and custody ? My son was born in Louisiana , I was married in Louisiana ,and after a year as a resident of Michigan was granteda divorce judgement ( there was also a default judgement against herfor not appearing in court to contest the divorce )
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Which State has Jurisdiction
I am not quite sure why you ask the question, since you are already divorced and you have sole custody of your child. Basically speaking, the court who issued the initial custody order retains jurisdiction until another court assumes jurisdiction and/or the original court declines or transfers jurisdiction. That issue is controlled by the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act which has been adopted by all 50 states. The court which granted the divorce retains jurisdiction of that issue.
Re: Which State has Jurisdiction
In answer to your question - so long as there were never any custody orders issued regarding your minor child from LA, then it sounds like the Jurisdiction rests in MI; However, we caution you that we do not have all the facts in this case and before giving a definitive answer we would like to know more. If you are seeking custody and enforcement of the custody orders there are laws that have been enacted in the U.S. to assist with gaining custody of your son; again we caution you, until we know all the details it would be very difficult to make any further recommendations.
If you would like to discuss your case with us our consultation is free.
We at Lahn, McDonagh, and Associates look forward to hearing from you.
Sincerely,
Senia Pickering - Family Law Department (734) 944-2269
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