Vermont Statutes Title 15 Sec. 1078
Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 15 Sec. 1078
- Child: means an individual who has not attained 18 years of age. See
- Child custody proceeding: means a proceeding in which legal custody or parental rights, physical custody, or visitation or parent child contact with respect to a child is an issue. See
- Court: means an entity authorized under the law of a state to establish, enforce, or modify a child custody determination. See
- Fees: shall mean earnings due for official services, aside from salaries or per diem compensation. See
- 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.
- Person: means an individual, corporation, business trust, estate, trust, partnership, limited liability company, association, joint venture, government; governmental subdivision, agency, or instrumentality; public corporation; or any other legal or commercial entity. See
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U. See
§ 1078. Jurisdiction declined by reason of conduct
(a) Except as otherwise provided in section 1074 of this title or other Vermont law, if a Vermont court has jurisdiction under this chapter because a person seeking to invoke its jurisdiction has engaged in unjustifiable conduct, the court shall decline to exercise its jurisdiction unless:
(1) the parents and all persons acting as parents have acquiesced in the exercise of jurisdiction;
(2) a court of the state otherwise having jurisdiction under sections 1071-1073 of this title determines that Vermont is a more appropriate forum under section 1077 of this title; or
(3) no court of any other state would have jurisdiction under the criteria specified in sections 1071-1073 of this title.
(b) If a Vermont court declines to exercise its jurisdiction pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, it may fashion an appropriate remedy to ensure the safety of the child and prevent a repetition of the unjustifiable conduct, including staying the proceeding until a child custody proceeding is commenced in a court having jurisdiction under sections 1071-1073 of this title.
(c) If a court dismisses a petition or stays a proceeding because it declines to exercise its jurisdiction pursuant to subsection (a) of this section, it may assess against the party seeking to invoke its jurisdiction necessary and reasonable expenses, including costs, communication expenses, attorney’s fees, investigative fees, expenses for witnesses, travel expenses, and child care during the course of the proceedings, unless the party from whom fees are sought establishes that the assessment would be clearly inappropriate. The court may not assess fees, costs, or expenses against Vermont unless authorized by law other than this chapter. (Added 2011, No. 29, § 1.)