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redrocker1 · Jul 13, 2011, 03:29 PM

I got divorced and had child custody hearings in Colorado in 2008. Both the mother and I now live in Oklahoma. I want to modify child custody and child support. How do I go about changing jurisdiction to Oklahoma.

ScottGem · Jul 13, 2011, 03:31 PM

File for the modification, include a request that the case be moved as part of the filing.

redrocker1 · Jul 13, 2011, 03:35 PM

Do I file it in the Oklahoma court system? I am trying to do this on my own as I cannot afford a lawyer. And is the rquest just a written letter or is there a form?

ScottGem · Jul 13, 2011, 03:42 PM

Yes you file in OK. Talk to the court clerk, they can help with what forms might be required. Another option is to check with a local law school. Many run clinics that can help you prepare the paperwork.

redrocker1 · Jul 13, 2011, 03:46 PM

The court clerk told me today that I would have to have a lawyer do the change of jurisdiction. That there was no form to do it. That sounded very odd to me not to have a form.

cdad · Jul 13, 2011, 04:30 PM

Originally Posted by redrocker1

The court clerk told me today that I would have to have a lawyer do the change of jurisdiction. that there was no form to do it. That sounded very odd to me not to have a form.

You may have been looking for the wrong form if there is one. There is no form for "change of jurisdiction". It is called "change of venue". It's the legal way of making a change and you make a pleading to the courts as to why the change should occur.

Example. Include a copy of the old order and the addresses of the current parties. State how long each party has been absent from the state that has current jurisdiction and then show why it should now be in the "home" state.

You can site "UCCJEA" (Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act)

OCIS Document Index

ScottGem · Jul 13, 2011, 04:45 PM

Originally Posted by redrocker1

The court clerk told me today that I would have to have a lawyer do the change of jurisdiction. that there was no form to do it. That sounded very odd to me not to have a form.

Actually that doesn't sound odd to me at all. A petition to a court is called a brief. There is generally a specific format to a brief, but its not a fill in the blank form. Most courts generally do not have such forms.

But Family Courts are generally more user friendly. So you may be able to get away with a simple statement asking for a change of venue and stating the new addresses of the parties.

AK lawyer · Jul 13, 2011, 05:13 PM

Originally Posted by ScottGem

Actually that doesn't sound odd to me at all. A petition to a court is called a brief. There is generally a specific format to a brief, but its not a fill in the blank form. Most courts generally do not have such forms. ...

No, actually a brief is something else. It is a memorandum of law, usually the main document filed in an appeal. Sometimes a memornadum of law offiered in support of a motion can be called a brief too.

But a petition is what some family courts call a pleading which commences a lawsuit. In this case, it would be a petition to change custody and jurisdiction. It would simply allege the basic facts. A memorandum offiered in support of such a petition should explain that custody and support was originally ordered by a court in Colorado, and why the law allows you to ask that those orders be modified by the Oklahoma court.

Fr_Chuck · Jul 13, 2011, 07:08 PM

You may check, if it is a matter of ability to pay, often there is a legal aid society that will offer at least limited help