Also known as:UIFSA · uniform interstate family support acts
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A uniform act adopted by all states that creates a single-order system for establishing, enforcing, and modifying child and spousal support orders across state lines. The act supplies jurisdictional rules that determine which tribunal holds continuing exclusive jurisdiction and which state's law governs the nature and duration of the support obligation.
Sources & Authorities· 9 primary sources
Select any source to read its text and confirm it supports the definition.
Cases
Uniform Acts
Casebooks
Hornbooks
Course Outlines
Study Supplements
Dictionaries
How it applies
Common Examples
3
Initiating Tribunal Request
After Sophie relocated from State A to State B, she unilaterally reduced payments under a State A support order. Jamie registered the order in State B and asked the State A tribunal to act as an initiating tribunal to enforce the original order and a pre-existing arrears judgment through wage withholding. Because the State A order remained controlling and had not been modified by a tribunal that assumed jurisdiction under the Act, the State A tribunal retained authority to request enforcement assistance from State B.
Emancipation Age Governed by Issuing State
A New York support order required payments until the child reached age twenty-one. After the obligor moved to North Carolina, the obligee registered the order there for enforcement. When the child turned eighteen, the obligor sought termination under North Carolina law. The order continued in force until age twenty-one because the issuing state's law controlled the duration of the obligation.
Personal Jurisdiction in Parentage Action
Austin, a State D resident, traveled to State A for a six-week construction project. While present, he was personally served with a petition to establish paternity and child support. The State A tribunal exercised personal jurisdiction over Austin because the conditions for nonresident jurisdiction under the Act were satisfied by in-state service.
Common questions
Frequently Asked
5
Which state's law governs the duration of a child support obligation when an order issued in one state is registered for enforcement in another?+
The law of the issuing jurisdiction governs the nature and duration of the support obligation, including the age of emancipation. Registration for enforcement does not transfer control over substantive terms such as duration to the registering state.
Under what circumstances may a tribunal that issued a child support order serve as an initiating tribunal to request enforcement in another state?+
A tribunal that issued a child support order consistent with its own law may serve as an initiating tribunal when the order remains the controlling order and has not been modified by another tribunal that assumed jurisdiction under the Act, or when enforcement of a pre-existing arrears judgment is sought before any determination that another order is controlling.
How does the Act allocate continuing exclusive jurisdiction to modify a child support order?+
The issuing tribunal retains continuing exclusive jurisdiction so long as it remains the residence of the obligor, the obligee, or the child, or the parties consent in a record or open court that the tribunal may continue to exercise modification authority. Once no party or child resides in the issuing state and no valid consent exists, that tribunal loses continuing exclusive jurisdiction.
Supporting sources
May a state court exercise personal jurisdiction over a nonresident in a parentage and support proceeding solely on the basis of in-state service?+
Yes. The Act authorizes personal jurisdiction over a nonresident when the individual is personally served with process within the state, and this basis operates independently of the other enumerated grounds for jurisdiction.
What happens when a second state issues a support order after the obligor relocates but does not expressly state that it is assuming modification jurisdiction?+
The original order remains the controlling order unless the second tribunal expressly assumes modification jurisdiction under the Act. Incidental treatment of support in a custody proceeding does not displace the original controlling order or the full pre-existing arrears judgment.
Family LawSeparation, divorce, dissolution, and annulment · Jurisdiction and recognition of decreesUBEFoundational