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Gets hairy with state laws that differ...which states rules apply ?

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RocketMary

New member
My son (16 years old) lives in Rhode Island. I live in NJ. Child support order established in NJ although my son and his mother never lived in NJ and I have never lived in Rhode Island. I met the mother will in the army in California, she moved to Rhode Island to be with family during her pregnancy and I ended up getting stationed in NJ. I plan on moving to Pennsylvania by the end of the summer to pursue a new job opportunity. I know I will have to continue to pay child support which is fine, my question is: NJ has majority age of 19 and more if in college, while PA has majority age of 18 with max 19 if still in 'Highschool' only. Being that I will be a resident of PA which law do I follow ? NJ or PA ?...Also my son is on track to graduate @ 17 years old..

Whose laws apply ?
Rhode Island
or
Pennsylvania
or
New Jersey
 


Zigner

Senior Member, Non-Attorney
You should take your court orders to an attorney for a thorough review of the matter.
 

adjusterjack

Senior Member
I think you might be stuck with NJ law no matter where you move to, thanks to the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act.

A summary of the law notes:

The Act establishes rules requiring every state to defer to child support orders entered by the state courts of the child's home state. The place where the order was originally entered holds continuing exclusive jurisdiction (CEJ), and only the law of that state can be applied to requests to modify the order of child support, unless the courts of that state no longer have original tribunal jurisdiction (CEJ) under the Act.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Uniform_Interstate_Family_Support_Act

Here is the full text of the law including the last revisions of 2008.

https://www.uniformlaws.org/HigherLogic/System/DownloadDocumentFile.ashx?DocumentFileKey=e12481bd-ac36-07ba-7d64-7841e9db5e09&forceDialog=0

Check each state's adopted version of the law.
 

Taxing Matters

Overtaxed Member
Being that I will be a resident of PA which law do I follow ? NJ or PA ?
It won't be Pennsylvania. Your order is from a NJ court, which will apply NJ law. If you want to change the order and have grounds to do so, you'd have to litigate that in RI as that is where the child now resides and the state that has personal jurisdiction over the mother. Once you move out of NJ, it will lose jurisdiction for modifications as none of the relevant parties live there anymore, unless you both consent to jurisdiction in NJ.
 

RocketMary

New member
Does Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. If i just move to Rhode Island permanently ? BTW not sure how the order started in NJ. I think when she filed she knew I was stationed in NJ at the time
 

stealth2

Under the Radar Member
Does Uniform Interstate Family Support Act. If i just move to Rhode Island permanently ? BTW not sure how the order started in NJ. I think when she filed she knew I was stationed in NJ at the time
Well, there ya are!

ETA: If you move to RI, you can petition for RI to take jurisdiction.
 

zddoodah

Active Member
which law do I follow ?
You're asking the wrong question.

You follow the order. What exactly does it say (quote it with names removed or changed) about when the support obligation ends?

Where you might (or might not) live in the future is irrelevant.


BTW not sure how the order started in NJ. I think when she filed she knew I was stationed in NJ at the time
She likely had a choice of filing where she and the child lived or where you lived. Since any enforcement would occur in NJ, that's a logical place to file. You could have, but apparently did not, object that Rhode Island was the proper venue.

I concur with the suggestion that you consult with a family law attorney about this.
 

RocketMary

New member
You follow the order. What exactly does it say (quote it with names removed or changed) about when the support obligation ends?
We were never married so this is a standard support order. End date lists when he turns 19 with a possible extension if in college up to 23 years old. By then I would be living in PA for at least 2-3 years already. Thats why i wondered which laws apply. Since at that point I would be a permanent resident of PA.
 

stealth2

Under the Radar Member
We were never married so this is a standard support order. End date lists when he turns 19 with a possible extension if in college up to 23 years old. By then I would be living in PA for at least 2-3 years already. Thats why i wondered which laws apply. Since at that point I would be a permanent resident of PA.
Not PA.
 

zddoodah

Active Member
We were never married so this is a standard support order. End date lists when he turns 19 with a possible extension if in college up to 23 years old. By then I would be living in PA for at least 2-3 years already. Thats why i wondered which laws apply. Since at that point I would be a permanent resident of PA.
PA law is never going to apply (just as the laws of Equatorial Guinea would not apply if you happened to move there), although I can understand why you'd think that given that the current order was entered in NJ. It is possible that, once you are no longer a resident of NJ, you could seek to have jurisdiction transferred to Rhode Island for purposes of modification or possible early termination.
 

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