Title VI, Civil Practice and Procedure

The guardian ad litem shall maintain as confidential all information and documents received from any source described in s. 61.403(2) and may not disclose such information or documents except, in the guardian ad litem’s discretion, in a report to the court, served upon both parti…

Any person participating in a judicial proceeding as a guardian ad litem shall be presumed prima facie to be acting in good faith and in so doing shall be immune from any liability, civil or criminal, that otherwise might be incurred or imposed.History.—s. 1, ch. 95-163.

(1) In any proceeding in which the court enters a parenting plan, including a time-sharing schedule, including in a modification proceeding, upon the presentation of competent substantial evidence that there is a risk that one party may violate the court’s parenting plan by remov…

In any proceeding in which the court enters a parenting plan and time-sharing schedule, including in a modification proceeding, if the court finds that there is a risk or an imminent threat of harm to one party or a child during the exchange of the child and that it is in the bes…

This part may be cited as the “Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act.”History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

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 the past resulted in the shifting of children from state to state with harmful effects on their well-being.(2) Promote …

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 18 years of age.(3) “Child custody determination” means a judgment, decree, or other order of a court …

This part does not govern a proceeding pertaining to the authorization of emergency medical care for a child.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

(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 not subject to this part to the extent that it is governed by the Indian Child Welfare Act.(2) A court of this state shall treat a tribe as …

(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. 61.501-61.523.(2) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (3), a child custody determination made in a foreign country under factual circumstances in…

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 accordance with the laws of this state or notified in accordance with s. 61.509 or who have submitted to the jurisdiction of the court, and…

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 party, must be given priority on the calendar and handled expeditiously.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

(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 the state in which the service is made. Notice must be given in a manner reasonably calculated to give actual notice, but may be made by pub…

(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 custody determination, is not subject to personal jurisdiction in this state for another proceeding or purpose solely by re…

(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 to participate in the communication. If the parties elect to participate in the communication, they must be given the oppo…

(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 another state, including testimony of the parties and the child, by deposition or other means available in this state for testimony …

(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 to the laws of that state;(c) Order that an evaluation be made with respect to the custody of a child involved i…

(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 the home state of the child on the date of the commencement of the proceeding, or was the home state of the child within …

(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 has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over the determination until:(a) A court of this state determines that the child, the ch…

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 state unless a court of this state has jurisdiction to make an initial determination under s. 61.514(1)(a) or (b) and:(1) The court of the othe…

(1) A court of this state has temporary emergency jurisdiction if the child is present in this state and:(a) The child has been abandoned;(b) It is necessary in an emergency to protect the child because the child, or a sibling or parent of the child, is subjected to or threatened…

(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 must be given to all persons entitled to notice under the laws of this state as in child custody proceedings between residents of …

(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 the commencement of the proceeding, a proceeding concerning the custody of the child had been commenced in a court of another state ha…

(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 time if it determines that it is an inconvenient forum under the circumstances and that a court of another state is a more approp…

(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 because a person seeking to invoke its jurisdiction has engaged in unjustifiable conduct, the court shall decline to exercise its jurisdiction un…

(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 pleading or in an attached affidavit, shall give information, if reasonably ascertainable, under oath a…

(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 the court in person with or without the child. The court may order any person who is in this state and who has physical custody or control of the c…

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 on the Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction or enforcement of a child custody determination.(2) “Respondent” means a…

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 Civil Aspects of International Child Abduction as if it were a child custody determination.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

(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 in substantial conformity with this part or the determination was made under factual circumstances meeting the jurisdictional…

(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 by a court of another state; or(b) The visitation provisions of a child custody determination of another state w…

(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, by sending to the circuit court of the county where the petitioner or respondent resides or where a simultaneous request f…

(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 by a court of another state.(2) A court of this state shall recognize and enforce but may not modify, except in accordance with …

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 the determination is pending in a court of another state having jurisdiction to modify the determination under ss. 61.514-61.523, the…

(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 attached to the petition. A copy of a certified copy of an order may be attached instead of the original.(2) A petition f…

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 the respondent and any person who has physical custody of the child.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

(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 child, the court shall order that the petitioner may take immediate physical custody of the child unless the respondent estab…

(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 warrant to take physical custody of the child if the child is likely to imminently suffer serious physical harm or removal …

(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, including a state, necessary and reasonable expenses incurred by or on behalf of the party, including costs, communication e…

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 a child custody determination by a court of another state unless the order has been vacated, stayed, or modified by a court having jurisdictio…

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. Unless the court enters a temporary emergency order under s. 61.517, the enforcing court may not stay an order enforcing a chi…

(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 any lawful action, including resort to a proceeding under ss. 61.524-61.540 or any other available civil proceeding, to locat…

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 child or a party and assist a state attorney with responsibilities under s. 61.538.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

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 or s. 61.539 so long as the court has personal jurisdiction over the nonprevailing party.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

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 among states that enact it.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-65.

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 effective date of this part is governed by the law in effect at the time the motion or other request was made.History.—s. 5, ch. 2002-…