Title 40, Title 40

(1) The court may interview the child in chambers to ascertain the child's wishes as to residence and parental contact. The court may permit counsel to be present at the interview. The court shall cause a record of the interview to be made and to be part of the record in the case…

(1) If a parent or a court-appointed third party requests, or if the court finds that a parenting proceeding is contested, the court may order an investigation and report concerning parenting arrangements for the child. The investigator may be the child's guardian ad litem or oth…

(1) Parenting plan proceedings must receive priority in being set for hearing. (2) Upon motion of a parent who has received military service orders, the court shall, for good cause shown, hold an expedited hearing in parenting or visitation matters instituted under 40-4-228(6) if…

(1) A parent who intends to change residence shall, unless precluded under 40-4-234, provide written notice to the other parent. (2) (a) If a parent's change in residence will significantly affect the child's contact with the other parent, the parent who intends to change residen…

(1) Except as otherwise agreed by the parties in writing at the time of the custody decree, the custodian may determine the child's upbringing, including the child's education, health care, and religious training, unless the court after hearing finds, upon motion by the noncustod…

(1) The court may in its discretion amend a prior parenting plan if it finds, upon the basis of facts that have arisen since the prior plan or that were unknown to the court at the time of entry of the prior plan, that a change has occurred in the circumstances of the child and t…

(1) Unless the parties agree to an interim parenting plan or an amended parenting plan, the moving party seeking an interim parenting plan or amendment of a final parenting plan shall submit, together with the moving papers, an affidavit setting forth facts supporting the request…

(1) Upon the death of a parent, one or more parties named in subsection (2) may request a parenting plan hearing. The surviving parent must be a party in any proceeding brought under this section. (2) Upon the death of a parent, any of the following parties may request a parentin…

Notwithstanding any other provision of law, access to records and information pertaining to a minor child, including but not limited to medical, dental, law enforcement, and school records, may not be denied to a parent who is a party to a parenting plan.

(1) In a proceeding for dissolution of marriage involving a minor child or in a parenting plan proceeding involving a minor child, a court shall inform the parties, excluding the minor child, of available educational programs concerning the effects of dissolution of marriage on c…

(1) It is the policy of the state of Montana: (a) to recognize the constitutionally protected rights of parents and the integrity of the family unit; (b) to recognize a child's constitutionally protected rights, including all fundamental rights unless those rights are specificall…

(1) In cases when a nonparent seeks a parental interest in a child under 40-4-211 or visitation with a child, the provisions of this chapter apply unless a separate action is pending under Title 41, chapter 3. (2) A court may award a parental interest to a person other than a nat…

The objectives of a final parenting plan are to: (1) protect the best interest of the child, consistent with 40-4-212; (2) provide for the physical care of the child; (3) maintain the child's emotional stability and minimize the child's exposure to parental conflict; (4) provide …

(1) In every dissolution proceeding, proceeding for declaration of invalidity of marriage, parenting plan proceeding, or legal separation proceeding that involves a child, each parent or both parents jointly shall submit to the court, in good faith, a proposed final plan for pare…

A court may not: (1) admit into evidence in any proceeding under this part the vaccination status of a parent or a minor child; or (2) consider a person's vaccination status in making any order related to child support, child custody, visitation, or parental rights.

As used in 40-4-251 through 40-4-258, the following definitions apply: (1) "Asset" includes but is not limited to any real or personal property of any nature however and whenever acquired, whether the property is tangible or intangible, whether the property is currently existing …

(1) Within 60 days of service of a petition for dissolution or nullity of marriage or for legal separation of the parties, each party shall serve on the other party a preliminary declaration of disclosure, executed under penalty of perjury. The parties may, by written stipulation…

(1) (a) Each party shall serve on the other party a final declaration of disclosure and a current income and expense declaration, executed under penalty of perjury: (i) before or at the time that the parties enter into an agreement for the resolution of property or support issues…

Absent good cause, the court may not enter a judgment with respect to the parties' property rights unless each party has executed and served a copy of the final declaration of disclosure and current income and expense declaration. Each party shall execute and file with the court …

(1) A party who has served on the other party a preliminary declaration of disclosure under 40-4-252 or a final declaration of disclosure under 40-4-253 and who has provided the information required in the declarations with sufficient particularity may, within a reasonable time, …

(1) Except as provided in subsection (2), at any time during the proceedings, the court may, upon application of a party and for good cause and after consideration of the relative nature, scope, and extent of the marital estate, order the liquidation or transfer of title of marit…

In the case of a default judgment, a petitioner may waive the final disclosure requirements of 40-4-253 and 40-4-254. However, the petitioner shall comply with the preliminary declaration of disclosure requirements of 40-4-252.

A disclosure required by 40-4-252 through 40-4-254 does not abrogate the attorney work product privilege or the formal discovery procedures provided by the Montana Rules of Civil Procedure or does not impede the power of the court to issue protective orders.

(1) The district court may at any time consider the advisability of requiring the parties to a proceeding under this chapter to participate in the mediation of the case. Any party may request the court to order mediation. If the parties agree to mediation, the court may require t…

(1) The purpose of a mediation proceeding is to reduce the acrimony that may exist between the parties and to develop an agreement that is supportive of the best interests of a child involved in the proceeding. (2) The mediator shall attempt to effect a settlement of the parentin…

Mediation proceedings under this part are subject to the confidentiality and privilege provisions of 26-1-813. Mediation proceedings must be conducted in private unless otherwise agreed to in writing by the parties and the mediator. All records of a mediation proceeding are confi…

The mediator may, upon stipulation by the parties, recommend temporary orders to the court prior to the final decree.

An agreement reached by the parties as a result of mediation must be discussed by the parties with their attorneys, if any, before the agreement is finalized. An agreement reached in mediation is not admissible as evidence in any action unless the agreement has been affirmed by t…

The district court shall establish and maintain a list of mediators available to assist parties in formally mediating disputes as provided in 40-4-301 and 40-4-302. The list of mediators must be maintained by the clerk of court. The clerk of court may accept the applications of i…

A mediator must meet the following minimum qualifications: (1) knowledge of the court system and the procedures used in family law matters; (2) knowledge of other resources in the community to which the parties may be referred for assistance; (3) knowledge in the area of domestic…

A court may establish a fee schedule for the costs of administering this part. The fees must be paid by the parties to the mediation proceeding.

This part may be cited as the "Uniform Interstate Family Support Act".

In this part: (1) "Child" means an individual, whether over or under the age of majority, who is or is alleged to be owed a duty of support by the individual's parent or who is or is alleged to be the beneficiary of a child support order directed to the parent. (2) "Child support…

(1) The district courts and the department of public health and human services are the tribunals of this state. (2) The department of public health and human services provided for in 2-15-2201 is the support enforcement agency of this state.

(1) Remedies provided by this part are cumulative and do not affect the availability of remedies under other law or the recognition of a foreign support order on the basis of comity. (2) This part does not: (a) provide the exclusive method of establishing or enforcing a support o…

(1) A tribunal of this state shall apply 40-5-1001 through 40-5-1005, 40-5-1008 through 40-5-1018, 40-5-1021 through 40-5-1039, 40-5-1042, 40-5-1043, 40-5-1046 through 40-5-1052, and 40-5-1055 through 40-5-1070 and, as applicable, 40-5-1073 through 40-5-1085 to a support proceedi…

(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 this part 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 jurisdiction to…

Under this part, 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 pleading is filed in another state or a foreign country only if: (a) the petition or comparable pleading in this state is filed before the e…

(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 part and only one tribunal has issued a child support order, the order of that tribunal controls and must be recognized. (2) If a proceeding is brought under this part and two or more child support orders have been issued by tribunals of …

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

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…

A tribunal of this state exercising personal jurisdiction over a nonresident in a proceeding under this part, under the law of this state relating to a support order, or recognizing a foreign support order may receive evidence from outside this state pursuant to 40-5-1036, commun…