Title XXXV, Domestic Relations

foreign support proceeding. (1) A tribunal of this state shall apply Articles 1 to 6 of this chapter and, as applicable, Article 7 of this chapter, to a support proceeding involving: (a) A foreign support order; (b) A foreign tribunal; or (c) An obligee, obligor, or child residin…

(1) 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 nonresident individual or the individual's guardian or conservator if: (a) The individual is personally served with…

Personal jurisdiction acquired by a tribunal of this state in a proceeding under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 or other law of this state relating to a support order continues as long as a tribunal of this state has continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify its order or continuing …

Under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, a tribunal of this state may serve as an initiating tribunal to forward proceedings to a tribunal of another state and as a responding tribunal for proceedings initiated in another state or a foreign country.

(1) A tribunal of this state may exercise jurisdiction to establish a support order if the petition or comparable pleading is filed after a petition or comparable pleading is filed in another state or a foreign country only if: (a) The petition or comparable pleading in this stat…

(1) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support order consistent with the law of this state has and shall exercise continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify its child support order if the order is the controlling order and: (a) At the time of the filing of a reque…

(1) A tribunal of this state that has issued a child support order consistent with the law of this state may serve as an initiating tribunal to request a tribunal of another state to enforce: (a) The order if the order is the controlling order and has not been modified by a tribu…

(1) If a proceeding is brought under this chapter and only one (1) tribunal has issued a child support order, the order of that tribunal controls and shall be recognized. (2) If a proceeding is brought under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 and two (2) or more child support orders have b…

In responding to registrations or petitions for enforcement of two (2) or more child support orders in effect at the same time with regard to the same obligor and different individual obligees, at least one (1) of which was issued by a tribunal of another state or a foreign count…

A tribunal of this state shall credit amounts collected for a particular period pursuant to any child support order against the amounts owed for the same period under any other child support order for support of the same child issued by a tribunal of this state, another state, or…

personal jurisdiction. A tribunal of this state exercising personal jurisdiction over a nonresident in a proceeding under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, under other law of this state relating to a support order, or recognizing a foreign support order may receive evidence from outside …

(1) A tribunal of this state issuing a spousal-support order consistent with the law of this state has continuing, exclusive jurisdiction to modify the spousal-support order throughout the existence of the support obligation. (2) A tribunal of this state may not modify a spousal …

(1) Except as otherwise provided in KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, Article 3 of this chapter applies to all proceedings under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902. (2) An individual petitioner or a support enforcement agency may initiate a proceeding authorized under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 by f…

A minor parent, or a guardian or other legal representative of a minor parent, may maintain a proceeding on behalf of or for the benefit of the minor's child.

Except as otherwise provided by KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, a responding tribunal of this state shall: (1) Apply the procedural and substantive law generally applicable to similar proceedings originating in this state and may exercise all powers and provide all remedies available i…

(1) Upon the filing of a petition authorized by KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, an initiating tribunal of this state shall forward the petition and its accompanying documents: (a) To the responding tribunal or appropriate support enforcement agency in the responding state; or (b) If th…

(1) When a responding tribunal of this state receives a petition or comparable pleading from an initiating tribunal or directly pursuant to KRS 407.5301, it shall cause the petition or pleading to be filed and notify the petitioner where and when it was filed. (2) A responding tr…

If a petition or comparable pleading is received by an inappropriate tribunal of this state, the tribunal shall forward the pleading and accompanying documents to an appropriate tribunal of this state or another state and notify the petitioner where and when the pleading was sent…

(1) A support enforcement agency of this state, upon request, shall provide services to a petitioner in a proceeding under this chapter. (2) A support enforcement agency of this state that is providing services to the petitioner shall: (a) Take all steps necessary to enable an ap…

and reciprocal arrangement with foreign country. (1) If the Office of the Attorney General determines that a contracting official is neglecting or refusing to provide services to an individual, the Office of the Attorney General may order that official to perform his duties under…

An individual may employ private counsel to represent the individual in proceedings authorized by KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902.

(1) The Office of the Attorney General is the state information agency under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902. (2) The state information agency shall: (a) Compile and maintain a current list, including addresses, of the tribunals in this state which have jurisdiction under KRS 407.5101 t…

(1) In a proceeding under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902, a petitioner seeking to establish a support order, to determine parentage of a child, or to register and modify a support order of a tribunal of another state or a foreign country shall file a petition. Unless otherwise ordered …

If a party alleges in an affidavit or a pleading under oath that the health, safety, or liberty of a party or child would be jeopardized by disclosure of specific identifying information, that information shall be sealed and may not be disclosed to the other party or the public. …

(1) The petitioner may not be required to pay a filing fee or other costs. (2) If the obligee prevails, a responding tribunal of this state may assess against an obligor filing fees, reasonable attorney's fees, other costs, and necessary travel and other reasonable expenses incur…

(1) Participation by a petitioner in a proceeding under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 before a responding tribunal, whether in person, by private attorney, or through services provided by the support enforcement agency, does not confer personal jurisdiction over the petitioner in anot…

A party whose parentage of a child has been previously determined by or pursuant to law may not plead nonparentage as a defense to a proceeding under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902.

(1) The physical presence of a nonresident party who is an individual in a tribunal of this state is not required for the establishment, enforcement, or modification of a support order or the rendition of a judgment determining parentage of a child. (2) An affidavit, a document s…

A tribunal of this state may: (1) Request a tribunal outside this state to assist in obtaining discovery; and (2) Upon request, compel a person over which it has jurisdiction to respond to a discovery order issued by a tribunal outside this state.

(1) A support enforcement agency or tribunal of this state shall disburse promptly any amounts received pursuant to a support order, as directed by the order. The agency or tribunal shall furnish to a requesting party or tribunal of another state or a foreign country a certified …

A tribunal of this state may communicate with a tribunal outside this state in a record or by telephone, electronic mail, or other means, to obtain information concerning the laws, the legal effect of a judgment, decree, or order of that tribunal, and the status of a proceeding. …

(1) If a support order entitled to recognition under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 has not been issued, a responding tribunal of this state with personal jurisdiction over the parties may issue a support order if: (a) The individual seeking the order resides outside this state; or (b)…

A tribunal of this state authorized to determine parentage of a child may serve as a responding tribunal in a proceeding to determine parentage of a child brought under KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902 or a law or procedure substantially similar to KRS 407.5101 to 407.5902.

An income-withholding order issued in another state may be sent by or on behalf of the obligee, or by the support enforcement agency, to the person defined as the obligor's employer under the income-withholding law of this state without first filing a petition or comparable plead…

(1) Upon receipt of an income-withholding order, the obligor's employer shall immediately provide a copy of an order to the obligor. (2) The employer shall treat an income-withholding order that has been issued in another state and that appears regular on its face as if it had be…

If an obligor's employer receives two (2) or more income-withholding orders with respect to the earnings of the same obligor, the employer satisfies the terms of the two (2) or more orders if the employer complies with the law of the state of the obligor's principal place of empl…

An employer that complies with an income-withholding order issued in another state in accordance with this article is not subject to civil liability to an individual or agency with regard to the employer's withholding of child support from the obligor's income.

An employer that willfully fails to comply with an income-withholding order issued in another state and received for enforcement is subject to the same penalties that may be imposed for noncompliance with an order issued by a tribunal of this state.

(1) An obligor may contest the validity or enforcement of an income-withholding order issued in another state and received directly by an employer in this state by registering the order in a tribunal of this state and filing a contest to that order as provided in Article 6 of thi…

(1) A party or support enforcement agency seeking to enforce a support order or an income-withholding order, or both, issued in another state or a foreign support order may send the documents required for registering the order to a support enforcement agency of this state. (2) Up…

A support order or an income-withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order may be registered in this state for enforcement.

(1) Except as otherwise provided in KRS 407.5706, a support order or income- withholding order of another state or a foreign support order may be registered in this state by sending the following to the Office of the Attorney General: (a) A letter of transmittal to the tribunal r…

(1) A support order or income-withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order is registered when the order is filed in the registering tribunal of this state. (2) A registered support order issued in another state or foreign country is enforceable in the same…

(1) Except as otherwise provided in subsection (4) of this section, the law of the issuing state or foreign country governs: (a) The nature, extent, amount, and duration of current payments under a registered support order; (b) The computation and payment of arrearages and accrua…

(1) When a support order or income-withholding order issued in another state or a foreign support order is registered, the registering tribunal of this state shall notify the nonregistering party. The notice shall be accompanied by a copy of the registered order and the documents…

(1) A nonregistering party seeking to contest the validity or enforcement of a registered support order in this state shall request a hearing within the time required by KRS 407.5605. The nonregistering party may seek to vacate the registration, to assert any defense to an allega…

(1) A party contesting the validity or enforcement of a registered support order or seeking to vacate the registration has the burden of proving one (1) or more of the following defenses: (a) The issuing tribunal lacked personal jurisdiction over the contesting party; (b) The ord…

Confirmation of a registered support order, whether by operation of law or after notice and hearing, precludes further contest of the order with respect to any matter that could have been asserted at the time of registration.

modification. A party or support enforcement agency seeking to modify, or to modify and enforce, a child support order issued in another state shall register that order in this state in the same manner provided in KRS 407.5601, 407.5602, 407.5603, 407.5604, 407.5605, 407.5606, 40…

A tribunal of this state may enforce a child support order of another state registered for purposes of modification, in the same manner as if the order had been issued by a tribunal of this state, but the registered support order may be modified only if the requirements of KRS 40…