You and your child’s parent has decided to go your separate ways and now you are contemplating filing a child custody action. Now what? After you have decided to file a child custody action, you must file a petition with the court. Once this petition is filed, attorneys and the courts will need to determine if they can hear the case in the first place. This is determined by determining if the court has jurisdiction to hear the child custody matter. Because this can be complicated depending on the facts revolving around your case, it is best to have an attorney help you to determine the correct court to bring a child custody action. If you or a loved is seeking a child custody order, contact an experienced North Carolina child custody attorney to help you with your case.
Who Has Jurisdiction?
When you are seeking to file a child custody action, the court must, first and foremost, determine who has jurisdiction in the child custody matter. This means that the allegations must show how and why the state where the child custody action is filed has jurisdiction to hear the matter. For minor children, a state must have jurisdiction over the child and this is determined by the child’s residency or the child’s home state. In North Carolina, a child must reside, whether living with a parent or a person acting as a parent, for six (6) consecutive months before the child custody action takes place. If a parent is seeking that a child custody action takes place in another court outside of the state, the law establishes two circumstances where a court can obtain jurisdiction over a custody issue: (1) North Carolina courts determines that the child or the parent has no significant connection with this State and that substantial evidence is not available in this State; or (2) the courts of this State or another state determines that the child or the parents do not presently reside in North Carolina. Though this can be confusing at first glance, an attorney can help you decipher which is best for your case as each case will have its own facts and circumstances that may or may not subject North Carolina courts to have jurisdiction in the state of North Carolina.
Need Legal Advice?
Determining who has jurisdiction in a child custody case is one of the most important processes in moving forward with your child custody action. If this is not implemented correctly, your entire case can be thrown out and the process will have to start all over again for you. We understand that this can be frustrating and overwhelming, but with our help, this can be a less complicated process. Here, at The Law Office of Dustin S. McCrary we are committed to making things right for you and this starts with the jurisdiction process. If you or a loved is seeking a child custody order, contact an experienced North Carolina attorney at The Law Office of Dustin S. McCrary to help you with your case. Our job is to help you throughout this process and we are here to help. Contact our office today!