https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/Recent content in Chapter 518D — Proceedings Governed by Other Law on MinnesotaLawyer.comHugoen-ushttps://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.101/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.101/This law is called the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act. It sets the rules for which state has the power to make custody decisions about a child.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.102/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.102/Defines key terms used in the child custody jurisdiction law, including what counts as a child custody determination, home state, and who qualifies as a person acting as a parent.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.103/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.103/This custody jurisdiction law does not apply to adoption cases or cases about emergency medical care for a child. Those are handled under different laws.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.104/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.104/Cases involving Indian children are governed by the federal Indian Child Welfare Act, not this chapter. However, Minnesota courts must treat tribes like states for jurisdiction purposes and must recognize custody decisions made by tribal courts.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.105/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.105/Minnesota courts treat foreign countries like other U.S. states when deciding custody jurisdiction. Custody orders from foreign countries must generally be recognized and enforced, unless the foreign country’s custody law violates basic human rights.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.106/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.106/A custody order made by a Minnesota court with proper jurisdiction is binding on everyone who was served with notice, agreed to the court’s jurisdiction, or was given a chance to be heard. The order is final on all issues unless it is later changed.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.107/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.107/If there is a question about whether a court has jurisdiction in a custody case, a party can ask the court to hear that question first. The court must give it priority and handle it quickly.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.108/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.108/People outside Minnesota must be given notice of a custody case in a way that is likely to actually reach them. The notice can follow Minnesota law or the law of the state where the person is located. If other methods fail, notice by publication is allowed.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.109/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.109/A person who comes to Minnesota only to participate in a custody case cannot be forced into other lawsuits just because they are in the state. This protection does not apply if they do something unrelated to the custody case while in Minnesota.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.110/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.110/Minnesota courts can talk to courts in other states about custody cases. The parties should be allowed to take part in these conversations when possible. Routine scheduling communications do not need to be recorded, but other communications must be.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.111/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.111/Witnesses in another state can testify by phone, video, or deposition in a Minnesota custody case. Documents sent electronically from another state cannot be rejected just because they are not originals.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.112/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.112/Minnesota courts can ask courts in other states to hold hearings, gather evidence, order evaluations, or require parties to appear. Courts must keep all custody case records until the child turns 18 and share them with other states when asked.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.201/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.201/A Minnesota court can make an initial custody decision if Minnesota is the child’s home state, meaning the child lived here for at least six months. If no state qualifies as the home state, the court looks at other connections like where evidence is located.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.202/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.202/Once a Minnesota court makes a custody order, it keeps exclusive control over that case until the child and all parents no longer have a significant connection to Minnesota, or until everyone involved has moved out of state.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.203/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.203/Minnesota cannot change a custody order made by another state unless Minnesota now has home-state jurisdiction and the original state has given up jurisdiction or all parties have left that state.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.204/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.204/A Minnesota court can make a temporary emergency custody order if a child is in Minnesota and has been abandoned, is being abused or threatened, or needs gender-affirming health care. This temporary order lasts until a court with regular jurisdiction can act.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.205/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.205/Before making a custody decision, the court must give notice and a chance to be heard to all parents whose rights have not been terminated and anyone who has physical custody of the child.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.206/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.206/If a custody case is already going on in another state that has proper jurisdiction, a Minnesota court generally cannot start a new case. The Minnesota court must contact the other state’s court and may have to dismiss or pause its case.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.207/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.207/A Minnesota court can decide it is not the best place to hear a custody case and send it to another state. The court considers factors like domestic violence, how long the child has lived out of state, costs to the parties, and where the evidence is.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.208/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.208/If someone tries to get jurisdiction in Minnesota through wrongful conduct, like taking a child from another state without permission, the court will refuse to hear the case. The wrongdoer may also have to pay the other party’s expenses.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.209/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.209/At the start of a custody case, each party must provide the court with the child’s address and living history for the past five years, any other custody cases involving the child, and the names of anyone else claiming custody rights.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.210/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.210/The court can order any party in Minnesota to appear in person, with or without the child. For parties outside Minnesota, the court can require appearance and warn that not showing up may result in a decision against them. Travel costs may be charged to the other party.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.301/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.301/Defines terms used in the enforcement sections of this law. A petitioner is the person seeking to enforce a custody order, and a respondent is the person the enforcement action is brought against.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.302/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.302/Minnesota courts can enforce orders to return a child made under the Hague Convention on International Child Abduction, treating them the same as domestic custody orders.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.303/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.303/Minnesota courts must recognize and enforce custody orders from other states if the other state had proper jurisdiction. Courts can use any available legal remedy to enforce another state’s custody order.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.304/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.304/Even if Minnesota cannot modify another state’s custody order, it can issue a temporary order to enforce visitation rights. If the original order does not include a specific schedule, the Minnesota court can create one temporarily.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.305/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.305/You can register another state’s custody order in Minnesota by sending copies to the district court. The other party has 20 days to contest the registration. If they do not contest it, the order is automatically confirmed and enforceable.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.306/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.306/Once a custody order from another state is registered in Minnesota, the court can enforce it using any remedy available under Minnesota law. The court must enforce the order but cannot change it.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.307/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.307/If Minnesota is enforcing a custody order while another state is trying to modify it, the two courts must communicate with each other. The enforcement case continues unless the Minnesota court decides to pause or dismiss it.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.308/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.308/Enforcement petitions must include verified copies of the custody order and specific information about the case. The court must hold a hearing the next business day after service. The respondent must appear and show a valid defense or the court will give custody to the petitioner.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.309/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.309/The enforcement petition and court order must be served on the respondent and anyone who has physical custody of the child using any method allowed by law.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.310/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.310/At the hearing, the court will order immediate physical custody to the petitioner unless the respondent proves the original court lacked jurisdiction, the order was changed, or proper notice was not given. Spousal and parent-child communication privileges do not apply in these hearings.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.311/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.311/If a child is likely to be seriously harmed or taken out of state, the court can issue a warrant for law enforcement to take physical custody of the child immediately. Officers may enter private property if needed.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.312/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.312/The winning party in an enforcement case is entitled to have the other side pay their costs, including attorney’s fees, travel expenses, investigative fees, and child care costs during the proceedings.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.313/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.313/Minnesota courts must give full faith and credit to enforcement orders from other states that are consistent with this law, unless the order has been changed or overturned by a court with proper jurisdiction.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.314/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.314/A final enforcement order can be appealed following the regular appellate rules. However, the enforcement order usually cannot be paused during the appeal, meaning the custody transfer goes ahead while the appeal is pending.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.315/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.315/A prosecutor or public official can take legal action to locate a child, get a child returned, or enforce a custody order. This includes cases under the Hague Convention for international child abduction. The prosecutor acts on behalf of the court, not either parent.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.316/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.316/When asked by a prosecutor, law enforcement officers can take any lawful action needed to find a child or a party and help enforce a custody order.https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.317/Mon, 01 Jan 0001 00:00:00 +0000https://minnesotalawyer.com/statutes/chapter-518d/518d.317/If a prosecutor or law enforcement helps enforce a custody order, the costs and fees for those services can be charged to the parties as ordered by the court.