Case moved to new state, not sure what to do next

[awakenlynn]

Dear Socrateaser,

In July, in IL, I filed papers to clarify the current court order and to hold my ex in contempt on some issues of that current order.  Ex's attorney filed a petition to dismiss the case since ex lives in TX.  

I currently live in IA, but IL has had jurisdiction for the last 13 years (my daughter is 13 and a half).  Ex moved to TX in March 2003 and our current court order is July 2003.

Anyways, because of the UCCEJCA(I know the initals are alittle off), the judge dismissed our case without predjudice.

I am looking for an attorney in TX, and I still need to get those issues clarified.  One such issue is that ex refuses to put our daughter on a plane unless it is the flights that ex wants and refuses all flights that have a stop-over.  

Currently that means I drive 3 hours to Chicago and 3 hours home again, twice a visit.  My family has limited funds and it always strains us to come up with the extra $200 needed. I have always caved until this year, because I have always agreed that our daughter should fly non-stop until she turned 13.  That allowed our daughter to get some flying experience under her belt and both ex and I could get to know the airline our daughter flies better.  

Our daughter will be 14 soon and the next court ordered visit is spring break.  I have realized that on the fly back day, there is something planned with my son(with my current wife) and I cannot drive 3 hours to Chicago.  This means either a stop-over flight or ex drives 3 hours each way and our daughter flies into my home airport(20 minutes away).

This is the court order portion if you need it:(I am the Plaintiff)
[The Plaintiff shall have alternating Thanksgiving  
  and Christmas holiday visitation, to coincide with the school  
  calendar, commencing with Christmas 2003, at his residence.

The Plaintiff shall have visitation every "spring break" holiday, to  
  coincide with the school calendar, commencing in 2004, at his  
  residence. The Plaintiff shall provide all transporation for these  
   visitation periods. ]


Ex has filed for TX child support office to withdraw child support instead of IL.  That is fine.  The problem is now support is getting withdrawn from 2 different states.  I spoke with IL and they said they can't do anything because it is not an interstate case.  TX said they reimburse the overage when this happens.

Also, one attorney I spoke with stated that because I have no ties with TX, then my ex cannot ask for an increase of support in TX, but must do it in IA(my home state).  The TX child support office said they are going to send me financial affidavit papers to fill out and send ex a set of  papers to fill out too and then the office would determine the child support amount.


1.  Is there anyway to get TX to enforce the current IL court order?

2.  Can I ask TX to clarify the needed issues?

3.  If ex files for a modification of visitation, would TX vacate the current order and put in place their standard order?

4.  Is it possible to successfully fight this as there are no substantial changes in circumstance?

5.  What is an interstate case?

6.  Is it true that ex must come to my state to ask for any change in child support?

7.  Can they unilaterally do this?

I hope I filled this out right.  Any help would be great.

Thank you, Socrateaser!

[socrateaser]

>1.  Is there anyway to get TX to enforce the current IL court
>order?

Yes, if you register the IL order in TX county court where other parent resides, then you can enforce the current order in TX.

>2.  Can I ask TX to clarify the needed issues?

Yes, after you register the order in TX.


>3.  If ex files for a modification of visitation, would TX
>vacate the current order and put in place their standard
>order?

I don't read tea leaves.

>
>4.  Is it possible to successfully fight this as there are no
>substantial changes in circumstance?

Your statement of no change in circumstances is legally incorrect. All parties have left the original jurisdiction. That's a pretty substantial change.

>
>5.  What is an interstate case?

This is a case where an obligee parent requests child support from a parent in a different jurisdiction and the two states coordinate as necessary to permit an order to be entered under the law of the obligor's jurisdiction.

>
>6.  Is it true that ex must come to my state to ask for any
>change in child support?

No. She can open a case in TX and TX will communicate with IA so as to enter a child support order against you. There are actually three different methods which can accomplish this -- one of which would be to actually file for support in IA. However, this option is not required by law.

>7.  Can they unilaterally do this?

If you are employed by a third party in IA, then yes. Obligee parent can open a case with the TX office of child support enforcement, who can issue an administrative order based on IA child support law, and then serve it on your IA employer. You will have 10 days from the date that you are served notice of the withholding order, or 10 days from the date that you are aware that your employer is withholding to file a petition for a hearing to quash the order on very specific and narrow grounds, as provided for un the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA):

(1) the order is incorrectly calculated, or (2) you are not the actual support obligee. You cannot raise other issues in your petition/motion to quash. For that, you would need to file a petition to modify support in IA, and the court would then contact the other parent in TX to respond to discovery, hearing, etc.

[awakenlynn]

 Ex has lived in TX for 3 years now and we have lived in IA for 3.5 years now.  So neither is a recent move.  Ex took us to court after she moved in 2003 and that is the current order.  Both families were currently in the military and ex's husband still is.

Neither party has lived in IL's jurisdiction since 1998.  If you base it off of the military since that is why IL kept jurisdiction), we have been out of the IL jurisdiction since 2003.

Financially there has been no change on either part, nor any other big change in life.

"She can open a case in TX and TX will communicate with IA so as to enter a child support order against you."

1. What makes moving a substantial change in circumstance?

2.  What else is generally considered a substantial change?

3.  Does TX have to communicate with IA since that is where I live or does TX or the ex have a choice as to keep the entire child support issue in TX or to apply IA law and get IA involved?

Thank you,
Lynn

[socrateaser]

>1. What makes moving a substantial change in circumstance?

This issue for a child support mod is different than for custody. Instead of trying to get me to teach you the law, tell me what your objective is and let me try figure out the right strategy.

>
>2.  What else is generally considered a substantial change?

See above.

>
>3.  Does TX have to communicate with IA since that is where I
>live or does TX or the ex have a choice as to keep the entire
>child support issue in TX or to apply IA law and get IA
>involved?

Under the UIFSA, if you are the obligor parent, any court which has jurisdiction to modify your support order must do so according to IA guidelines, unless you expressly consent to some other jurisdiction's guidelines.

Note: Support and Custody are handled very differently in inter-jurisdictional disputes like yours. So, you have to keep the issues separate when you are considering them, because if you apply support law to custody issues or visa versa, you will usually get your analysis wrong.

[awakenlynn]

I have read the statutes for Texas and Iowa.  You did give me something to look up with the UIFSA.

I am just trying to understand what you wrote and make it stick in my mind.  Thank you for bringing to my attention that I may be mixing things up.

I have notes, 1 page for support and 1 for visitations.  I hope with my new questions I am trying to get you to teach me the law.  I am just trying to make sure I understand each part of what you have said.  If I confuse anything or don't understand it, I don't want to make the situation worse.

We are trying to find an attorney in Texas, which isn't easy to do in IA.

My main objective is to figure out what is going on.  In more rational terms, I am trying to understand the information I am getting.

My objectives are:
   A.  How does TX apply a foreign order and are they required to do so?
          -this question you answered

   B.  If we try to clarify our IL orders, does the ex have the ability to vacate the IL orders and have the TX standard visitation order apply?

   C.  Ex has asked TX to withdraw child support and I am trying to find if they have legal standing to, or if they need to go to IA?

   D.  What are the circumstances in change that will apply to child support?

   E.   What are the circumstances in change that will apply to visitation agreements?




So my questions this time would be

1.  What are the circumstances in change that will apply to child support?

2. What are the circumstances in change that will apply to visitation agreements?

3. How different are inter-jurisdictional disputes treated?  


Thank you,
Lynn

[socrateaser]

I need you to tell me the facts of your case,  and then tell me what you are attempting to accomplish, in the same way that you would tell a lawyer whom you were asking to represent you.

Your current questions are bare questions of law without any facts to apply. That's not how I operate here.