How to Change Alimony Case Jurisdiction to California
Alimony is a form of spousal support ordered at divorce and sometimes, in states that recognize physical separation, even before divorce at the point of physical separation. The court ordering alimony payments must have personal jurisdiction over the paying spouse, and transferring an alimony order from one state to another can be challenging. However, the full faith and credit clause of the United States Constitution mandates that a state recognize the judgments of a sister state's courts. It is that provision of the U.S. Constitution that makes it possible to transfer a court order for alimony to a different state. The likely scenario would be one in which the paying spouse has relocated.
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Things You'll Need
- Divorce decree or final judgment
- Order to pay alimony (if separate from divorce judgment)
- Forms for the new court
- Lawyer
Instructions
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Get a copy of all divorce documents. These documents will include the petitions or complaints for divorce, along with any responding documents from the other spouse and any motions that were filed. Exactly what documents were filed depends on the particular state and its family law rules of court. The court documents surrounding the divorce may also include financial affidavits, which can be important to enforcing alimony because financial documents will include assets. All other information necessary to filing the alimony in California will be on the various documents, such as court name, case number and identity of the parties.
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Establish family court jurisdiction in California. To establish family court jurisdiction in California, one of the spouses must have been a resident of the State of California for at least six months and a resident of the county in which the documents will be filed for at least three months. Until jurisdiction is established in California, the original court that ordered alimony will be the enforcing court.
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File the court orders from the original state with the California family court in your jurisdiction or spouse's jurisdiction. California has not adopted the Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgments Act, which offers simplified procedures. Thus, it is necessary to start a new case in the California court system.
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Request enforcement or modification of the alimony order, if necessary. There are a number of options for enforcing alimony orders where a spouse has failed to pay. Some of those options include wage garnishment, entry of money judgment, execution and sale, and contempt proceedings. The requirements for filing for a remedy to enforce the judgment depends on the method sought.
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Tips & Warnings
Hire a lawyer. Family law, particularly in the scenario of relocated spouses, is very complicated. Transfer the alimony order to the state where the paying spouse has relocated. That state will more likely have jurisdiction over the spouse and his property so that it can order enforcement. A transfer to the state where only the alimony recipient spouse lives will offer few, if any, enforcement options.
References
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