Also known as: temporarily absent · temporary absences · temp. absence
Written by attorneys — see sources below.
3 senses
A period during which occupants are away from a structure that they regularly use for sleeping. Such a period does not cause the structure to lose its status as a dwelling for purposes of common law burglary.
A period during which a child or parent is away from a state. Such a period counts toward the six consecutive months of residence required to establish home state jurisdiction.
A period during which occupants are away from a structure that they regularly use for sleeping. Such a period does not cause the structure to lose its status as a dwelling for purposes of common law burglary.
A period during which a child or parent is away from a state. Such a period counts toward the six consecutive months of residence required to establish home state jurisdiction.
1 common questions
A period during which a child or parent is away from a state. Such a period counts toward the two years of cohabitation required to support a presumption of parentage.
A period during which a child or parent is away from a state. Such a period counts toward the two years of cohabitation required to support a presumption of parentage.
Each sense below has its own examples, sources, and questions.
Joan regularly slept on the upper floors of her mixed-use brownstone. She left for a three-month overseas trip but left the rooms furnished and most belongings in place with a clear plan to return. Morgan broke in at night intending to steal electronics from those floors. The structure remains a dwelling because the absence is temporary and does not strip the residential character from the property.
2 common questions
No. A structure remains a dwelling when occupants regularly use it for sleeping even if they are temporarily away, provided they intend to return and leave belongings behind.
Supporting sources
A structure is not a dwelling before anyone has moved in or after all occupants have moved out without intent to return. A temporary absence with intent to return does not trigger that result.
Supporting sources
A period of temporary absence of the child or parent counts as part of the six consecutive months of residence needed to establish home state status under the UCCJEA and related statutes.
Supporting sources
Eloise and the child lived in State A from the child's birth. Eloise took the child on a six-week business trip to State B during the first two years but returned to State A and continued to hold the child out as her own. The trip counts as part of the residency period, so State A qualifies as the home state and supports the presumption of parentage.
1 common questions
No. The Uniform Parentage Act expressly includes any period of temporary absence within the first two years when the individual resided in the same household and held the child out as the individual's own.
Supporting sources
…parent ... for at least six consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding.... A period of temporary absence ... is part of the period." But, "state" is defined in the statute and includes only the fifty states, District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, Virgin Islands, and other United States territories…