ROBERT E. BARNETT, APPELLANT,
v.
LORI BARNETT, APPELLEE
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A Florida appellate court affirmed a trial court's order denying a former husband's motion to dismiss a modification petition for lack of jurisdiction under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act. The court found that Florida had jurisdiction to hear the former wife's petition to enforce and modify visitation rights despite the child's relocation to Arizona.
A Florida court has jurisdiction under section 61.1308(1)(b) to enforce and modify custody and visitation orders when the child and at least one parent have significant connections with Florida and substantial evidence concerning the child's care, protection, training and personal relationships is available in Florida.
[1] A petition for the enforcement and/or modification of visitation rights under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act is not required to be a sworn or verified petitio…
[2] A Florida court may properly assume jurisdiction over a child custody matter if the child and at least one parent have significant connections with Florida, and substanti…
Previewing 2 of 4 headnotes on this case. FLexlaw’s editorially structured points of law — every proposition, pinpointed — are reserved for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“Sections 61.1302 through 61.1348, Florida Statutes (1985), the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, determine jurisdiction over child custody and visitation matters. There is no requirement therein that a petition for the enforcement and/or modification of visitation rights be a sworn or verified petition.”
Establishes that verification is not a statutory requirement for jurisdiction under the UCCJA.
Previewing 1 of 2 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceThe parties were divorced in Florida in 1985 with a property settlement agreement providing for shared parental responsibility. A 1986 modification ag…
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GLICKSTEIN, Judge.
This is an appeal of a non-final order denying the former husband’s motion to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. We affirm.
The husband’s contention that the petition for modification be verified is without foundation. Sections 61.1302 through 61.1348, Florida Statutes (1985), the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, determine jurisdiction over child custody and visitation matters. There is no requirement therein that a petition for the enforcement and/or modification of visitation rights be a sworn or verified petition. We are troubled by appellee’s representation to this court that the subject petition was a sworn petition. Pursuant to this court’s request, appellant furnished a certified copy of the subject petition. Our review of the petition reveals that it is an unverified pleading.
In 1985, the trial court entered a final judgment for dissolution of marriage which, among other things, dissolved the marriage of the parties, incorporated a property settlement agreement, and retained jurisdiction to enter further orders. The property settlement agreement entered into between the parties and incorporated in the final judgment contained as one of its terms that the parties would share parental responsibility of the minor child. The property settlement agreement additionally stated, in paragraph fifteen, that the agreement would be construed and enforced in accordance with the laws of Florida, regardless of any change of domicile of either or both of the parties.
A subsequent agreement modifying the property settlement agreement was entered into between the parties, and an order ratifying, approving and adopting said agreement was entered in 1986. Pursuant to that latter agreement, the former husband would be able to remove the minor child of the parties from Florida but was to keep the former wife apprised of the residence of the child. Additionally, the former wife was to have telephonic access to the child, and to have holiday and summertime visitation with the child. On or about July 23, 1987, the former wife filed a petition in the Palm Beach County Circuit Court to enforce and to modify the custody order as it related to the former wife’s rights of visitation with the minor child. The former wife resides in Palm Beach County. The petition alleged the former husband had moved to Arizona, although he had informed the former wife that he would be moving to Pennsylvania. It additionally alleged that after a period of time, the former husband engaged in a persistent pattern of creating difficulty in the former wife’s exercising of her visitation with the minor child and that he did not provide the former wife with any address or phone number at which she could actually contact the minor child.
As is pointed out by the former wife, this court has dealt with factually similar cases and has concluded that jurisdiction could be properly assumed by a Florida court by virtue of section 61.1308(l)(b), Florida Statutes, because it was in the best interest of the child that a Florida court assume jurisdiction since the child and at least one parent had significant connections with Florida and because substantial evidence concerning the child’s present or future care, protection, training and personal relationships was available in Florida. Those cases include O’Connor v. O’Connor, 447 So. 2d 1034 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984), Feriole v. Feriole, 468 So. 2d 1090 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985), and Guerra v. Fischer, 463 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985).
Factually, the instant case presents as clear a situation for finding jurisdiction to exist under section 61.1308(l)(b) as those presented by the foregoing cases. The parties herein resided and divorced in Florida. The former wife continued to reside in Florida after the dissolution. The former wife made diligent efforts to maintain contact with the child and to enforce her visitation rights. The minor child’s grandparents apparently also reside in Florida and have made similar efforts to contact and to visit with the child.
DOWNEY and LETTS, JJ., concur.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Mirtha Castellvi Alvarez v. Alvarez, 566 So. 2d 516 (Fla. 3d DCA 1990)…n over this child custody matter exists in the child’s home state of New Jersey and Florida cannot exercise jurisdiction in the matter. In determining that it had jurisdiction, the trial court agreed with the father and relied on Barnett v. Barnett, 528 So. 2d 1231, 1232-33 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988), a case decided under the “significant connection” provision. Our court has acknowledged, in common with other courts which have considered the issue and the comment to the Uniform Act itself, that situations will arise…
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Taylor v. Siebert, 615 So. 2d 800 (Fla. 1st DCA 1993)…JJ., concur. . The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act, Sections 61.1302 through 61.1348, Florida Statutes (1991), applies to challenges to visitation orders. See, e.g., Baggett v. Walsh, 510 So. 2d 1099 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987); Barnett v. Barnett, 528 So. 2d 1231 (Fla. 4th DCA 1988); Gilbert v. Gilbert, 472 So. 2d 1317 (Fla. 2d DCA 1985).…
Authorities Cited
- Mitchell v. Robbins, 447 So. 2d 1034 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984)
- O'Connor v. O'Connor, 447 So. 2d 1034 (Fla. 4th DCA 1984)
- Feriole v. Feriole, 468 So. 2d 1090 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)
- Nicola S. Guerra v. Honorable Gene Fischer, 463 So. 2d 535 (Fla. 4th DCA 1985)