Florida Statutes Part II - Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction And Enforcement Act (Ss. 61.501-61.542)

• 61.501 - Short Title.
  This part may be cited as the “Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act.”History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.
• 61.502 - Purposes Of Part; Construction Of Provisions.
  The general purposes of this part are to:(1) Avoid jurisdictional competition and conflict with courts of other states in matters of child custody which have in...
• 61.503 - Definitions.
  As used in this part, the term:(1) “Abandoned” means left without provision for reasonable and necessary care or supervision.(2) “Child” means an individual who has not attained...
• 61.504 - Proceedings Governed By Other Law.
  This part does not govern a proceeding pertaining to the authorization of emergency medical care for a child.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.
• 61.505 - Application To Indian Tribes.
  (1) A child custody proceeding that pertains to an Indian child, as defined in the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. ss. 1901 et seq., is...
• 61.506 - International Application Of Part.
  (1) A court of this state shall treat a foreign country as if it were a state of the United States for purposes of applying ss....
• 61.507 - Effect Of Child Custody Determination.
  A child custody determination made by a court of this state which had jurisdiction under this part binds all persons who have been served in...
• 61.508 - Priority.
  If a question of existence or exercise of jurisdiction under this part is raised in a child custody proceeding, the question, upon request of a...
• 61.509 - Notice To Persons Outside The State.
  (1) Notice required for the exercise of jurisdiction when a person is outside this state may be given in a manner prescribed by the laws of...
• 61.510 - Appearance And Limited Immunity.
  (1) A party to a child custody proceeding, including a modification proceeding, or a petitioner or respondent in a proceeding to enforce or register a child...
• 61.511 - Communication Between Courts.
  (1) A court of this state may communicate with a court in another state concerning a proceeding arising under this part.(2) The court shall allow the parties...
• 61.512 - Taking Testimony In Another State.
  (1) In addition to other procedures available to a party, a party to a child custody proceeding may offer testimony of witnesses who are located in...
• 61.513 - Cooperation Between Courts; Preservation Of Records.
  (1) A court of this state may request the appropriate court of another state to:(a) Hold an evidentiary hearing;(b) Order a person to produce or give evidence pursuant...
• 61.514 - Initial Child Custody Jurisdiction.
  (1) Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.517, a court of this state has jurisdiction to make an initial child custody determination only if:(a) This state is...
• 61.515 - Exclusive, Continuing Jurisdiction.
  (1) Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.517, a court of this state which has made a child custody determination consistent with s. 61.514 or s....
• 61.516 - Jurisdiction To Modify A Determination.
  Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.517, a court of this state may not modify a child custody determination made by a court of another...
• 61.517 - Temporary Emergency Jurisdiction.
  (1) A court of this state has temporary emergency jurisdiction if the child is present in this state and the child has been abandoned or it...
• 61.518 - Notice; Opportunity To Be Heard; Joinder.
  (1) Before a child custody determination is made under this part, notice and an opportunity to be heard in accordance with the standards of s. 61.509...
• 61.519 - Simultaneous Proceedings.
  (1) Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.517, a court of this state may not exercise its jurisdiction under ss. 61.514-61.524 if, at the time of...
• 61.520 - Inconvenient Forum.
  (1) A court of this state which has jurisdiction under this part to make a child custody determination may decline to exercise its jurisdiction at any...
• 61.521 - Jurisdiction Declined By Reason Of Conduct.
  (1) Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.517 or by other law of this state, if a court of this state has jurisdiction under this part...
• 61.522 - Information To Be Submitted To The Court.
  (1) Subject to Florida law providing for the confidentiality of procedures, addresses, and other identifying information in a child custody proceeding, each party, in its first...
• 61.523 - Appearance Of Parties And Child.
  (1) In a child custody proceeding in this state, the court may order a party to the proceeding who is in this state to appear before...
• 61.524 - Definitions.
  As used in ss. 61.524-61.540, the term:(1) “Petitioner” means a person who seeks enforcement of an order for return of a child under the Hague Convention...
• 61.525 - Enforcement Under The Hague Convention.
  Under this part, a court of this state may enforce an order for the return of a child made under the Hague Convention on the...
• 61.526 - Duty To Enforce.
  (1) A court of this state shall recognize and enforce a child custody determination of a court of another state if the latter court exercised jurisdiction...
• 61.527 - Temporary Visitation.
  (1) A court of this state which does not have jurisdiction to modify a child custody determination may issue a temporary order enforcing:(a) A visitation schedule made...
• 61.528 - Registration Of Child Custody Determination.
  (1) A child custody determination issued by a court of another state may be registered in this state, with or without a simultaneous request for enforcement,...
• 61.529 - Enforcement Of Registered Determination.
  (1) A court of this state may grant any relief normally available under the laws of this state to enforce a registered child custody determination made...
• 61.530 - Simultaneous Proceedings.
  If a proceeding for enforcement under ss. 61.524-61.540 is commenced in a court of this state and the court determines that a proceeding to modify...
• 61.531 - Expedited Enforcement Of Child Custody Determination.
  (1) A petition under ss. 61.524-61.540 must be verified. Certified copies of all orders sought to be enforced and of any order confirming registration must be...
• 61.532 - Service Of Petition And Order.
  Except as otherwise provided in s. 61.534, the petition and order must be served by any method authorized by the laws of this state upon...
• 61.533 - Hearing And Order.
  (1) Unless the court enters a temporary emergency order under s. 61.517, upon a finding that a petitioner is entitled to immediate physical custody of the...
• 61.534 - Warrant To Take Physical Custody Of Child.
  (1) Upon the filing of a petition seeking enforcement of a child custody determination, the petitioner may file a verified application for the issuance of a...
• 61.535 - Costs, Fees, And Expenses.
  (1) So long as the court has personal jurisdiction over the party against whom the expenses are being assessed, the court shall award the prevailing party,...
• 61.536 - Recognition And Enforcement.
  A court of this state shall accord full faith and credit to an order issued by another state and consistent with this part which enforces...
• 61.537 - Appeals.
  An appeal may be taken from a final order in a proceeding under ss. 61.524-61.540 in accordance with expedited appellate procedures in other civil cases....
• 61.538 - Role Of State Attorney.
  (1) In a case arising under this part or involving the Hague Convention on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction, the state attorney may take...
• 61.539 - Role Of Law Enforcement Officers.
  At the request of a state attorney acting under s. 61.538, a law enforcement officer may take any lawful action reasonably necessary to locate a...
• 61.540 - Costs And Expenses.
  The court may assess against the nonprevailing party all direct expenses and costs incurred by the state attorney and law enforcement officers under s. 61.538...
• 61.541 - Application And Construction.
  In applying and construing this part, consideration must be given to the need to promote uniformity of the law with respect to its subject matter...
• 61.542 - Transitional Provision.
  A motion or other request for relief made in a child custody proceeding or to enforce a child custody determination that was commenced before the...

Last modified: September 23, 2016