What to know: Moving to Tennessee with a Judgment, Order, or Decree from another State’s Court that is a Child-Custody Determination

In addition to following the process to enroll a foreign judgment outlined here, you or your lawyer must follow additional steps when enrolling a foreign judgment that is a child custody or child support determination in Tennessee. The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) governs the enrollment, enforcement, and modification of foreign orders in Tennessee. Tennessee Code Annotated § 36-6-229 governs the process of how to enroll your foreign child custody or child support order.

            Pursuant to T.C.A. § 36-6-229, the following requirements must be met to enroll the foreign order for enforcement or modification:

1.      A letter or other document requesting registration. This can be in the form of a Petition to Enroll Foreign Order;

2.      Two (2) copies of the foreign order that is to be enrolled (one copy must be a certified copy), and a statement under penalty of perjury that to the best of the knowledge and belief of the person seeking registration the order has not been modified;

3.      The name and address of the person seeking enrollment of the foreign order, and the name and address of any parent or person acting as a parent who has been awarded custody or visitation in the child-custody determination sought to be registered.

The third requirement also requires the enrolling party to comply with T.C.A. § 36-6-224. This requires the enrolling party to provide the minor child’s present address or whereabouts, and the addresses of the places where the minor child has lived during the past five (5) years, and the names and present address of the persons that the child has lived with during that period. The Petition to Enroll Foreign Order must also state whether the party:

1.      Has participated, as a party or witness or in any other capacity, in any other proceeding concerning the custody of or visitation with the child and, if so, identify the court, the case number, and the date of the child-custody determination, if any;

2.      Knows of any proceeding that could affect the current proceeding, including proceedings for enforcement and proceedings relating to domestic violence, protective orders, termination of parental rights, and adoptions and, if so, identify the court, the case number, and the nature of the proceeding; and

3.      Knows the names and addresses of any person not a party to the proceeding who has physical custody of the child or claims rights of legal custody or physical custody of, or visitation with, the child and, if so, the names and addresses of those persons.

If the enrolling party does not provide this information in the initial pleading, then the court can stay the proceedings until the information is provided. This means the court can pause the proceedings until the necessary information is provided to the court. These additional measures are required because a court that is enrolling an order from another state does not want to interfere with any possible ongoing legal proceedings happening in the state where the order originated from.

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