You’ve come to the decision to file for divorce – but you got married in one state, you lived with your spouse in another state, you then went and stayed with your parents in another area when separating. So – where do you file for divorce?
Jurisdiction refers to which Court has the ability to make legal judgments and decisions. Not just any Court can grant your divorce or make custody decisions for you and your children. You must file in the Court that has the legal authority, or jurisdiction, to make these decisions. State Courts (rather than Federal) grant divorces and hear custody matters. The State Courts are governed by their own state laws, which is why each state has slight variations on laws regarding divorce and custody proceedings. In some states, the Court that has jurisdiction over divorce and custody proceedings is called the Family Court, but not in all.
So how do you know where you file? Much like with voting or taxes, residency is the main factor in determining which Court within your state has jurisdiction over your individual matter. Jurisdiction is most often determined by the county in which you live, or the county that you last lived together, if your spouse still resides there. This means that where you live will likely be where you file. There is usually at least one Court per county, but in highly populated areas, there may be multiple courthouses in a county. Each state has its own residency requirements. Some states will require that both spouses have resided in the state for at least six months, so if you recently moved before filing for divorce, be sure to check if your local Court has jurisdiction to accept your divorce petition. You can likely find your local Court by searching online. If you file a Complaint in a Court where you do not meet the necessary procedural requirements, your Complaint could be dismissed (i.e. thrown out by the Court) for lack of proper jurisdiction.
Sometimes people will attempt to file in a certain jurisdiction because of legal advantages they believe they would have in filing their Complaint elsewhere. This may be that people try to move right before filing for Divorce, in an attempt to obtain residency in a jurisdiction with advantageous statutes. NBA player, Tristan Thompson made headlines for filing his paternity and child support case against former fling, Maralee Nichols, in Texas seeking to gain Texas jurisdiction over the matter, and have a Texas Court grant a decision on the matter. Texas has a shorter length of time (until the age of 18, or graduation from high school) that a parent is required to pay child support. If Texas had decided it had jurisdiction over his matter, he could have potentially saved years of child support payments, or paid less each year. However, while the pair may have met up with one another in Texas during their brief relationship, the mother of the child, Maralee Nichols, subsequently moved to California, the state that the basketball star also had residence. Therefore, Texas Courts threw out Tristan’s Complaint, and it was determined California has jurisdiction over the child support matter. Presumably, Mr. Thompson will pay child support to the mother as determined by California state statute.
Jurisdiction can be an overlooked, but is an important factor in your filing. If you have questions about where to file, you can contact a local attorney.
DISCLAIMER: This is not intended to be individual legal advice of any kind, and each divorce matter is fact-specific and state-specific. We advise you to seek independent legal advice as it pertains to you and your case matter.