[larv45]

OK! My daughter lived in Nebraska with her husband and came back to Colorado to visit with her 3 kids and than went back to Nebraska where domestic violence happened and she filed for devorce there. Children were left in Colorado with mother's parents with the consent of the Nebraska Social Services and with the Judge's permission. Grantparents took care of the grand children as of now going on 16 months now with no help from anyone.. Well mother was born in Colorado and had moved back to Colorado and now the father filed for custody in Nebraska and Nebraska courts want the mother to go answer the court and to take the children with her to court. Do they have the right to make her go back with the children since they were under the guardianship of the grandparents in Colorado for almost the 16 months.Isn't the children now residents of Colorado and since the mother now lives in Colorado. Mother's lawyer says she has to abide by Nebraska's court and Colorado Lawyer says it has to be handled in Colorado Court now.. Need an answer very soon.. thank you oh! Also father in Nebraska is on probation for drug charges and domestic violence and other charges..

[larv45]

Will mother get into any trouble for not taking her children with her to Nebraska Court,since they have resided with grand parents in Colorado for going on 16 months

[ScottGem]

The case originated in Nebraska. As long as one of the parents continues to reside in Nebraska, that court has jurisdiction. So yes, the Nebraska court can order the mother and the children to return to Nebraska.

[AK lawyer]

ok! my daughter lived in Nebraska with her husband and came back to Colorado to visit with her 3 kids and than went back to Nebraska where domestic violence happened and she filed for devorce there. Childen were left in Colorado with mother's parents with the consent of the Nebraska Social Services and with the Judge's permission. Grantparents took care of the grand children as of now going on 16 months now with no help from anyone.. Well mother was born in Colorado and had moved back to Colorado and now the father filed for custody in Nebraska and Nebraska courts want the mother to go answer the court and to take the children with her to court. Do they have the right to make her go back with the children since they were under the guardianship of the grandparents in Colorado for almost the 16 months.Isn't the children now residents of Colorado and since the mother now lives in Colorado. Mother's lawyer says she has to abide by Nebraska's court and Colorado Lawyer says it has to be handled in Colorado Court now.. Need an answer very soon..thank you oh!! also father in Nebraska is on probation for drug charges and domestic violence and other charges..

Depends upon a close reading of the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act.

If I understand correctly, when the mother visited her parents in Colorado, she left the kids with them and went back to Nebraska. At that point she filed for divorce, but the kids were still in Colorado, right? Had the kids been in Colorado for at least 6 months when the mother filed for divorce in Nebraska? If so, it appears to me that Colorado is the home state and so Colorado would have jurisdiction, but there may be facts that you have not mentioned.

What do the attorneys for each parent say as to why their respective states have jurisdiction according to the provisions of the Act?

I suppose Nebraska could claim jurisdiction because the Act defines
"Person acting as a parent" to require that the person have "... been awarded legal custody by a court or [claim] a right to legal custody... ". Since the grandparents don't actually have a claim to legal custody under the laws of either state, they might not be considered persons "acting as parent", which would put the home state of the children up in the air.

... Mother's lawyer says she has to abide by Nebraska's court and Colorado Lawyer says it has to be handled in Colorado Court now.. .

The "Colorado lawyer" represents you, the grandparent? If so, you should follow his advice. In my humble opinion, it seems to turn upon whether you have or claim a right to custody under the laws of Colorado.

[ScottGem]

From AK's link:
1. Home state priority. The PKPA prioritizes "home state" jurisdiction by requiring that full faith and credit cannot be given to a child custody determination by a State that exercises initial jurisdiction as a "significant connection state" when there is a "home State." Initial custody determinations based on "significant connections" are not entitled to PKPA enforcement unless there is no home State. The UCCJA, however, specifically authorizes four independent bases of jurisdiction without prioritization. Under the UCCJA, a significant connection custody determination may have to be enforced even if it would be denied enforcement under the PKPA. The UCCJEA prioritizes home state jurisdiction in Section 201.

This seems to support what I said earlier that since the case was started in NB and since one of the parents having legal custody continues to reside in NB, then NB has jurisdiction.