Legal Question in Family Law in Minnesota

Re: Child Custody

Alabama's law would control.

Re: Child Custody

Unless the other parent consents to the modification of custody, you will certainly have to bring a motion for modification of custody -- and even if she consents, a court will ultimately have to approve your agreement. If your daughter has lived in Ohio for more than six months, then a custody proceeding would have to be brought in that state (Ohio), regardless of where you were divorced, absent some unusual circumstances.

As a general rule, custody jurisidction is governed by the same basic law (almost) everywhere in the country: the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act. All you really need to know is that the child's "home state" is the state in which the child has lived for the last six months, and that it is ordinarily the "home state" that will have jurisdiction over any custody issues -- regardless of which state may have originally had jurisdiction.

The law may be different in Ohio, but here in Minnesota, you should be aware that a child is not given the "right to choose" at any specified age. A child's preference will certainly be taken into account, but it is almost never determinative. If you scan my previous answers to questions in this area of law, you will find numerous responses to basically the same question.

I would recommend you discuss the matter with a lawyer, since despite the seemingly "iron clad" nature of the custody jurisdiction act, you may have some alternatives -- depending on how long you have each lived at different locations, and depending on what your relationship is like with your daughter, etc. I am frequently involved in jurisdictional conflicts like this, and would be glad to respond to additional questions you may have about this matter. My contact information is below.

Good luck, and thank you for your question.