Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia

Transfer of Jurisdiction

My ex-wife in VA and I have joint custody with physical custody of my son being mine. The court of VA. retained jurisdiction on the grounds she had evidence that might change the custody decision, the court kept jurisdiction to allow her to appeal. She never did. I am a resident of FL and we have lived here since 1997. My ex-wife still resides in VA, however, it is a different county than when the original order was established. She took me back to court in Dec. �00 to get physcial custody back. I went for jurisdiction since my son is a legal resident of the state of FL. The judge refused her custody and told her not to bring the issue before the court again or it would be thrown out. Yet he also retained jurisdiction. He is a very tempermental judge and does not like hearing these cases over. What is the next step I can take to get jurisdiction. I was told by an attorney in VA that we could go to the Court of Appeals but it would be costly and not altogther reliable. Everytime she wants to start something I have to travel there and there is no way I can include necessary information such as witnesses and expert testimony. Is there another avenue I can take in FL to have the jurisdiction forceably moved here?


Asked on 3/09/01, 4:09 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Glenn R. Tankersley Regency Legal Clinic

Re: Transfer of Jurisdiction

You should consult with a Florida attorney to see if he or she can get a Florida Court to assume jurisdiction based on whatever jurisdiction statute Florida has.

Jurisdiction (the power of a court to hear a case) in Virginia is determined based on the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, specifically � 20-126, Grounds for jurisdiction. One of the pertinent parts of that code section provides:

"Physical presence of the child, while desirable, is not a prerequisite for jurisdiction to determine his custody."

Once having jurisdiction, as long as there is a significant connection with Virginia, i.e., one of the parents remaining here, Virginia can keep jurisdiction. There can, however, occasionally be conflicting claims of jurisdiction between two or more states. That's one of the things that makes our federal system of government so interesting and, occasionally, aggravating.

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Answered on 5/19/01, 7:04 pm


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