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Another questions, when documenting infringements on the custody order in part of my ex, is there any better way to do it than simply documenting every detail?  Meaning is there a way to officially document with the court without filing contempt?

I did want to know, what sort of system do you guys use to track your parenting time.  I want something that will be easy to show in court.  Right now I am using a simple calendar, but I guess I wanted to have something that will help me clearly demonstrate to the judge that there's been a decline and that I am not getting enough parenting time.

I will certainly keep everyone updated.  If anyone can think of any other suggestions, I would love to hear them.  I feel like you can never be too prepared when going to court (especially when dealing with another parent who is constantly lying).

Thanks a million.

For clarification purposes I should state that the letter I received came from the clerk's office at the court by registered mail.  I was also served with a citation from the court for the modification (which I have no intentions of going to TX for).  Luckily my court date here in NY is before and the clerk in NY told me that it was very likely that the judge here in NY would communicate with he judge in TX as a form of professional courtesy to let them know that NY is handling the case.

What others have said about not responding to TX makes sense.  I guess from a legal standpoint they can make whatever orders and modifications that they want, at the end of the day they don't have jurisdiction and therefore they will not be valid.

My only concern now is the registration of the foreign (out of state) order.  Simply because I supposedly have a deadline of 20 days.  I have contacted several attorneys here in NY, so I am waiting to see what I hear from them regarding this specific matter.  I'll see what they say.

I meet with a former family law judge (a friend of a friend) who told me that for the most part courts don't like to give up jurisdiction.  That made me feel better.  Plus this person said it was guaranteed that the judge here in NY could see through my ex's intentions (especially because she tried to get Sole Custody to begin with and the judge told her no way).  So I will make sure to have a copy of the citation the ex served me with me on the day I go back to court.

Thanks for the information provided thus far.

Unfortunately I do not have a lawyer and I am doing all this Pro Se.  All the information I've gotten from everyone here has been so valuable to me through this process.

Today I got a letter from TX court saying that the custody order has been registered with the state.  While reading through it I don't have a problem with this except for one sentence which reads as follows..."A registered family order may be modified in the same manner as a family order issued by a Texas court."  Does this mean that by registering the custody order from NY in TX would be changing the jurisdiction of the case?

According to the letter I have 20 days to request a hearing to contest the validity or enforcement of the order.  I am so confused here.  Any help would be appreciated.

Thanks!

Thank you very much for your suggestions.  I was unaware that I could settle child support issues in NY.  I will look into this.  In NY Family court does not get involved in child support, that's why I thought it had to be done in TX.

Can someone point me where I can get a Motion to Dismiss form?  Or is this something I type myself?

Yeah I am hoping that Davy can give me some suggestions, I know he's very familiar with the TX system. 

Hi all!

I am hoping someone can help me here.  I am going to give a quick summary to my issue:
Mom and child live in TX while I live in NY.  Original Custody and Visitation order done in NY.  NY has continual jurisdiction over the case under UCCJA because I still live in NY.  I entered a Petition for Modification of our Parenting Agreement.  I am not seeking change of custody, we currently have Joint Legal Custody, I simply want the agreement to be more detailed and to address new issues that have emerged.  The Judge in NY agreed that the circumstances warranted a modification.

A few days later I got served with a citation from TX.  Mom made a Petition in TX to have Custody and Visitation Modified.  She's petitioning for full custody and is asking for Supervised or Restricted Visitation (basically because she doesn't want any g/f to be around the child).  Along with the modification she's seeking child support (I've been sending money directly to her).

My question is, how do I get the custody modification portion dismissed?  I don't have a problem with the Child Support (I think is best to have the state deal with it at this point), but TX does not have jurisdiction and I am not willing to have it transferred (especially because she's basically trying to overturn everything that was settled in NY).  Do I have to hire an attorney to handle this (would prefer not to) or can I file a Motion for Dismissal based on Lack of Jurisdiction myself?  According to the citation I have to file a written response with the clerk within 20 days....can I ask for dismissal there? 

I am just a little confused about TX procedures.  I have found that unlike NY, no one in the court is willing to provide any help or answer any questions.  Their answer was "hire an attorney."  I was just wondering if anyone dealt with the same issue that can provide some assistance. 

Thank you in advance for your time and any help you can provide.