Applicability of the UCCJEA

Covered Proceedings

The UCCJEA applies to a variety of proceedings.³⁷ Specifically, courts in UCCJEA States must comply with the statute when custody and visitation issues arise in proceedings for divorce, separation, neglect, abuse, dependency, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental rights, and protection from domestic violence. The UCCJEA does not apply to child support proceedings³⁸ or adoption cases.³⁹ Identifying the specific proceedings to which the UCCJEA is applicable clarifies when courts must conform to the UCCJEA, which should minimize the likelihood that more than one State will take jurisdiction over the same matter.

Initial and Modification Determinations

The UCCJEA governs courts' jurisdiction to issue permanent, temporary,⁴⁰ initial, and modification orders. The rules that govern courts' jurisdiction to make an initial custody determination differ from those governing jurisdiction to modify an existing order. The type of custody proceeding determines which rules apply and whether a court has the authority to act.

Foreign Custody Orders and Proceedings

The UCCJEA requires State courts to recognize and enforce custody determinations made by foreign courts under factual circumstances that substantially conform with the UCCJEA's jurisdictional standards and to defer to foreign courts as if they were State courts.⁴¹ However, State courts need not apply the Act (i.e., enforce a foreign court order or defer to a foreign court's jurisdiction) if the child-custody law of the foreign country violates fundamental principles of human rights. This language is derived from article 20 of the Hague Convention. According to the U.S. Department of State's legal analysis of the Convention, the "human rights/fundamental freedoms" defense to return may be invoked "on the rare occasion that return of a child would utterly shock the conscience of the court or offend all notions of due process."⁴²

Tribal Court Orders and Proceedings

The UCCJEA does not apply to custody proceedings concerning American Indian children to the extent that such proceedings are governed by the Indian Child Welfare Act, 25 U.S.C. § 1901 et seq.⁴³ Child-custody proceedings in State courts that involve tribal-State jurisdictional disputes are subject to the UCCJEA only if the State has enacted optional sections 104(b) and (c) of the UCCJEA, which require State courts to treat tribes as if they were States and tribal court custody proceedings as if they were court proceedings of sister States and to enforce tribal court custody orders.

The Uniform Child-Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act	Juvenile Justice Bulletin • December 2001