In divorce and other custody cases, there is a risk that circumstances will change after the court has made a final decision. Some changes will have little effect on the court’s order. But other changes have a large effect and can be difficult to work out. One change that could have a large impact on a custody order is the decision of a parent to move far away from the other parent. It is difficult to do weekend visitation if one parent lives in Utah and another parent lives in California.

If you or the other parent are planning or have carried out a long-distance move, check your custody order. Sometimes, there are already orders in place anticipating such a move. Also, check Utah Code § 30-3- 37, the relocation statute, to see how it applies to you. Here are some things to keep in mind:

Long-Distance Relocation Can Result in a Change of Custody

If one parent is displeased with the relocation, custody might change. A parent can request a court hearing when the other parent moves 150+ miles away or is planning to move. If the court decides that it is not in the best interest of the children to move, the court can order custody to change if the parent moves or has moved.

If You Have Custody and Want to Move, Do It Right

Utah Code § 30-3- 37 imposes a duty on the parent who is moving to give the other parent written, advance notice. If you are planning to move, let the other parent know 60 days in advance. Admittedly, this will give the other parent advance warning. And, the other parent might request a hearing. But, consider what happens if you move without giving advance notice to the other parent:

The other parent will be more likely to want a hearing and will get one anyway. You will then have to travel back for the hearing. You will then have to explain why you should not be held in contempt for failing to give notice. You will also have to explain why you should keep custody after sneaking away with the children. And then, there is a chance the court will conclude that custody should change if you move. If you have already moved, this decision will place you in a very awkward and inconvenient position.

Thus, if you are contemplating a long-distance move, give the notice and be well prepared for the hearing. An attorney can help with the notice, but it is possible to do it alone and even advisable if you expect no trouble from the other parent. If the other parent requests a hearing and you do not already have an attorney, you should strongly consider hiring one as far in advance as possible. At such hearings, custody can change. You do not want to risk going to such a hearing unprepared.

If You Do Not Have Custody, You Might Be Able to Get Custody if the Other Parent Moves Long-Distance

If the custodial parent is moving far away, you can request a hearing. The court will, at minimum, make orders regarding how parent time is supposed to work long-distance. But, it may be that the court can be convinced that a change of custody would be appropriate. The relocation and attendant circumstances could be the grain of rice that tips the scales in your favor. Alternatively, the relocation destination could pose serious threats to the wellbeing of your children. If the court concludes that relocation is not in the best interest of the children, it can order that relocation will result in change of custody.

If you find yourself dissatisfied or concerned about the other parent moving with the children, consider consulting an attorney about your options and the possibility of requesting a hearing.

In divorces where the parties have minor children, the court will need to make decisions about which parent will have custody or whether the parents should have joint custody. The court will also need to make other decisions about how and when visitation will occur and how the parents should approach important decisions about the child. These decisions are also made in custody cases where the parties were never married and in cases where the parties are attempting to modify the prior custody decision.

If you want to remain involved in the lives of your children, you will need to be able to show the court that you are already involved and that there is a bond between you and the children. You will need to be able to demonstrate that that you have done things for and with the children. You will also need to be able to demonstrate that you have spent time with the children.

Make Time for Your Children

Even with the best intentions, you may find yourself not spending much time with your children. Ideally, you should always be making time for your children. And, with any sort of court decision looming, your conscious or subconscious choices to spend or not spend time with your children are momentous. So, when that opportunity comes to spend time with the children and you are able, do not hire a babysitter and do not bump them off on extended family or the other parent.

Keep Track of What You Do

Vague assertions that you have spent time with the children do not go very far in the courtroom. The judge will be more convinced by hard facts. So, keep track of what you do with or for your children. If you have helped the child with homework, make note of it and preserve proof. If you went to parent-teacher conference, take note of that, too. Also, if you have helped with meals and bedtime, keep track of that too. Keep track of anything you have done with or for the child. If you have not been keeping track of this information, see what you can do to compile past information and then be sure to keep track in the future.

Keep Track of the Time

Once a court is involved with making orders on child custody, you will need to become a good record keeper of all the time you spend with your child. It will be either your proof for why the court should give you custody, or your defense against accusations. Once again, it takes hard facts to convince judges—not vague assertions. A calendar would be helpful to show hard facts.

Keep track of what overnights the children have spent with you and on what days important things happened. If the other parent is denying you parent time or otherwise not following through, take note of those things.

How to Get an Out of State Parent to Pay Child Support

In order to get anyone for any reason into court, that court must have “jurisdiction” over the defendant. It’s not difficult for a court to have jurisdiction over an individual who lives in this state. The state’s courts could hale in any resident of the state.

A problem arises when the would-be defendant lives in another state.

Jurisdiction is loosely defined as a government’s general power to exercise authority over all persons and things within its territory. (Black’s Law Dictionary). Hence, you’ve heard the phrase “fleeing to another jurisdiction”. In the United States, each state has its own jurisdiction. A California court has no authority over a resident of the state of Utah, unless and until a Utah resident avails himself to the jurisdiction of California – which begs the question… How does one avail oneself to another state’s jurisdiction?

For purposes of child support actions, the Utah Legislature has carved out some ways that a non-resident of the state can avail herself to a Utah court. This is found in the Utah Uniform Interstate Family Act, specifically, bases for jurisdiction over non-resident. U.C.A. §78B-14- 201.

What the Family Act States:

It states, “In a proceeding to establish or enforce a support order or to determine parentage of a child, a tribunal of this state may exercise personal jurisdiction over a non-resident individual…if:

(a) The individual is personally served within this state

(b) The individual submits to the jurisdiction of this state by consent;

(c) The individual resided with the child in this state;

(d) The individual resided in this state and provided prenatal expense or support for the child;

(e) The child resides in this state as a result of the acts or directives of the individual;

(f) The individual engaged in sexual intercourse in this state and the child may have been conceived by that act of intercourse.

(g) The individual asserted parentage of a child in the putative father registry maintained in this state by the state registrar of vital records in the department of health pursuant to Title 78B-6 – Utah Adoption Act; or

(h) There is any other basis consistent with the constitutions of this state and the United States for the exercise of personal jurisdiction.”

How This Can Affect Your Case:

The first four of the list are easy. The out-of-state parent is either served within this state, indicating she is here, or she submits by consent, or otherwise resided in this state with the child, either before or after the birth of the child.

After that, the answers aren’t as straightforward. In (e), the child resides in this state as a result of the acts or directives of the individual. The following question answers this: Why is the child here? Did non-resident parent send the child to school in this state? Maybe dad just sent the child to live with grandma for the summer. Those are examples of acts or directives of the non-resident parent, which would confer jurisdiction of the state’s courts onto that individual. But, what if mom took the kids away from home in Montana and brought them here to Utah without dad’s permission? Does that confer upon Utah’s courts jurisdiction over dad? No. It was not his act or directive which brought the children here.

Other Considerations:

What about when an individual engages in sexual intercourse in this state and may possibly have conceived the child by that act? Here, the specific language of the statute is the giveaway. “[T]he child may have been conceived by that act.”

Jurisdiction exists if intercourse occurred in this state. The state does not require whether the child became conceived here.

Now, the tricky one… “Any other basis consistent with the constitutions of this state and the United States for the exercise of personal jurisdiction.” For any other purpose, in order for a court to have jurisdiction over a non-resident, that non-resident must have some contact with the forum state. The constitutional standard is “minimum contacts” – which is derived from the due process clause of the Fourteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution. The courts, applying principles derived from the United States Supreme Court, will look to whether the non-resident has any conduct which connects her to the forum state in “a meaningful way”.

That means knowing or having a relative in Utah is not enough. An out-of-state defendant has to either conduct business here, such that would impact the residents of Utah. Or, they would have to cause harm to someone here. It is not enough even to just drive through the state and buy gas. One would have to do something like that on a regular enough basis for the court to consider doing business with the residents of Utah.

Reasons to Act Fast

When an adverse ruling comes down, you need to determine whether an objection or appeal is appropriate. You should make this decision as soon as possible. A few reasons exist as to why to make this decision quickly. First, there are deadlines you do not want to miss. Second, you will want as much time as possible to work on your objection or appeal. Third, acting fast is more efficient and can save you time and money.

There Are Deadlines

An objection to a domestic commissioner’s recommendation is due within 14 days of the commissioner announcing his or her recommendation. An appeal from a judge’s final decision is due within 30 days of entry of that decision. If you miss these deadlines, you limit your options. However, even if it seems you have missed these deadlines, you should consult an attorney. There may be other options available to you instead of an objection or appeal. Alternatively, there may be technicalities that change the deadline. This is more likely to be true for the 30-day appeal deadline.

It Takes Time to Prepare a Good Objection or Appeal

Your experience with school probably has taught you that procrastination does not lead to ideal results. It is no different with the law—particularly when objecting to a commissioner’s recommendation or appealing a judge’s ruling. It takes a certain amount of effort to successfully argue that a judge or commissioner was wrong. This is particularly true when the judge(s) to whom you appeal are inclined to give some amount of deference. To make a successful argument, there needs to be careful thought, analysis, and writing. These things take time.

It Is Efficient to Decide Ahead

Quickly confronting the decision of whether you should object or appeal can save you time and money. If you procrastinate, you may find yourself filing an objection or notice of appeal without having truly analyzed your options for the sole purpose of preserving your options. After paying the filing fee for an appeal or getting ready for a hearing, you may realize it was a poor decision.

Thus, if you are faced with an adverse custody, child support, or alimony decision, act fast. Acting fast will help you meet deadlines, prepare a better objection or appeal, and save you time and money.

In divorce cases, judges and commissioners make decisions about custody, child support, and alimony, among other things. If you do not like one of these decisions, you should act fast to consider an appeal or objection.

What Are Appeals and Objections?

Appeals and objections are the basic avenues for disputing judicial decisions or orders that you do not like. Whether you use an objection or an appeal depends on which judicial officer made the decision and in what context. Generally, you may object to a commissioner’s recommendation and appeal a final judgment entered by a judge.

Objecting to a Commissioner’s Recommendation Utah courts employ commissioners to help make quick recommendations for orders in family law cases. A commissioner’s recommendation is made based on written affidavits/declarations and short arguments. The advantage to having commissioner’s make recommendations is that hearings are quicker and more economical. The disadvantage is that in a commissioner hearing, you will not have much of a chance to testify fully. Also, you cannot cross-examine the opposing party.

Fortunately, if you disagree with the commissioner’s recommendation, you can object. Once you object, the judge will need to decide the issues to which you have objected. And, if the commissioner’s recommendation was in regards to a protective order, custody, or failure to obey a court order, you can insist on having an evidentiary hearing where you can testify and cross-examine adverse witnesses. Even if your issue does not qualify for an evidentiary hearing before the judge, you will at least have the opportunity to have the judge review the matter with fresh eyes.

Appealing a Judge’s Final Ruling

If a judge has entered a final ruling in your case, you have the right to appeal. If a protective order is involved with your divorce, you will need to appeal that separately. Protective orders are their own cases. Contempt orders are also their own cases. Do not wait for the divorce case to conclude before looking at whether to appeal a contempt ruling or protective order.

An appeal begins with you filing a notice of appeal and going through the appellate process. If you are appealing the decision of a district court judge, your appeal will be considered by either the Utah Supreme Court or the Utah Court of Appeals.

Appeal Court’s Decision

Please note that an appealing to an appellate court will not involve a new trial before the appellate court or the opportunity to tell the appellate court things that you did not tell the trial court. The role of the appellate court is to put itself in the trial court’s shoes and determine whether the trial judge made the correct decisions. If the judge misinterpreted law, the appellate court won’t hesitate to impose its view on the trial judge. However, the appellate court will be leery of second-guessing the judge on factual matters.

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