As state in which child lived with parents for over two‑and‑a‑half years before the commencement of child custody proceeding, Georgia, not Italy, was child’s home state at time of commencement of divorce proceedings between mother and father, and thus Georgia court, not Italian court, had jurisdiction under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) to make initial child custody determination concerning parties’ child; although Italy has not adopted the UCCJEA, Italian court’s expression of jurisdiction, in Italian divorce and custody proceedings commenced by mother after she left with child for Italy on annual summer visit but did not return, prior to commencement of divorce action in Georgia, was not substantially in conformity with the UCCJEA as would permit Georgia court to defer to Italian court, where Italian court merely asked whether facts existed which met the basis for jurisdiction in that court over divorce, but failed to conduct any analysis of the home state of child or of any other factors that could be considered a substitute.
Laura Morgan is a Family Law Consultant. Laura is available for consultation, brief writing and research on family law issues throughout the country. She can be reached through her website. www.famlawconsult.com
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