Michigan Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction And Enforcement Act

Jurisdiction in the courts of a particular state may be determined by the location of real property in a state (in rem jurisdiction), or whether the parties are located within the state (in personam jurisdiction).

Child custody cases are filed in the jurisdiction of the family court/competent court where minor child ordinarily resides. For example, father is living in Mumbai.Thus, family court or concerned competent court shall have the exclusive jurisdiction over the child custody to the exclusion of all other courts.

Michigan child custody laws allow for custody to be awarded in multiple ways. When granted sole physical custody, one co-parent has the responsibilities of the day-to-day care of the child. Michigan child custody laws designate this co-parent to be the custodial parent and the primary residence of the child.

Michigan - like most other states - has several different ways to recognize a child's parentage.If the parents are unmarried, the law allows a man to be legally recognized as the father of a child if both he and the child's mother sign and file what is known as an "Acknowledgement of Parentage" form.

It is up to the judge to decide whether a child is old enough to state a preference. The judge will give more weight to this factor with children who are older or more mature. There is no age at which a child can decide where he or she wants to live.

Contrary to popular belief, there is no age in Michigan when the child can unilaterally decide which parent to live with other than after age 18. The preference of the child, however, is one of the many considerations that the judge will consider when making decisions regarding child custody or parenting time.

To change any other custody order, you can use the Motion Regarding Custody on the Michigan One Court of Justice website. If the other parent agrees to the change, be sure to check the box on question number seven to tell the judge that you and the other parent agree to the changes.

Determining a Child's Home StateJurisdiction will lie in the child's home state, or in a state where the child has resided for the six months prior to the filing of the action. Any parent seeking custody must also reside in the state in which the custody action is filed for six months prior to filing the action.

Although courts may consider the reasonable preference of the child in custody cases, the caveat is that the child must be deemed to be of sufficient age to participate. What does this mean in the state of Michigan? For starters, any child age 17 or older can choose the parent he/she prefers to live with.