(a) Exclusive original jurisdiction in matters of annulment and separation, subject to § 603-37 as to change of venue, and subject also to appeal according to law, is conferred upon the family court of the circuit in which the applicant has been domiciled or has been physically present for a continuous period of at least three months next preceding the application therefor, except as provided in subsection (b).

Exclusive original jurisdiction in matters of divorce, subject to § 603-37 as to change of venue, and also subject to appeal according to law, is conferred upon the family court of the circuit in which the applicant is domiciled at the time the application is filed, except as provided in subsection (b).

A person who may be residing on any military or federal base, installation, or reservation within the State or who may be present in the State under military orders shall not thereby be prohibited from meeting the requirements of this section.

The family court of each circuit shall have jurisdiction over all proceedings relating to the annulment, divorce, and separation of civil unions entered into in this State or unions recognized as civil unions in this State in the same manner as marriages.

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Terms Used In Hawaii Revised Statutes 580-1

  • Appeal: A request made after a trial, asking another court (usually the court of appeals) to decide whether the trial was conducted properly. To make such a request is "to appeal" or "to take an appeal." One who appeals is called the appellant.
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
  • Venue: The geographical location in which a case is tried.
(b) An action for annulment, divorce, or separation may be commenced where neither party to the marriage meets the domicile or physical presence requirements of subsection (a) at the time the action is commenced, if:

(1) The marriage was solemnized under chapter 572 in this State; and
(2) Neither party to the marriage is able to pursue an action for annulment, divorce, or separation where the parties are domiciled because both parties are domiciled in a jurisdiction or jurisdictions that do not recognize their marriage.

There shall be a rebuttable presumption that a jurisdiction will not maintain an action for annulment, divorce, or separation if the jurisdiction or jurisdictions where the parties are domiciled do not recognize the parties’ marriage.

(c) Actions brought under subsection (b) shall be commenced in the circuit where the marriage was solemnized and the law of this State shall govern. Jurisdiction over actions brought under subsection (b) shall be limited to decrees granting annulment, divorce, or separation that address the status or dissolution of the marriage alone; provided that if both parties to the marriage consent to the family court’s personal jurisdiction or if jurisdiction otherwise exists by law, the family court shall adjudicate child custody, spousal support, child support, property division, or other matters related to the annulment, divorce, or separation.

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