Legal Definitions - PKPA

The Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act (PKPA) is a federal law enacted in 1980. Its primary purpose is to establish clear national standards for determining which state's courts have the legal authority, or jurisdiction, to make or modify child custody orders when parents live in different states.

Essentially, the PKPA aims to prevent conflicting custody orders from different states and ensure that a valid custody order issued by one state is generally recognized and enforced by others. It does not force a state to take on a custody case, but if a state court decides to hear a case involving a child from another state, or wants to recognize a custody order from a "sister state," the PKPA dictates the rules for doing so. If a state's own custody laws conflict with the PKPA, the federal PKPA takes precedence.

Here are a few scenarios illustrating how the PKPA works:

• Scenario 1: Initial Custody Determination Across State Lines
  Imagine Sarah and Mark divorce in Arizona, and the Arizona court issues a custody order for their daughter, Emily. A year later, Sarah moves with Emily to Colorado. Mark, still in Arizona, wants to modify the visitation schedule. Under the PKPA, the Arizona court would likely retain "exclusive, continuing jurisdiction" because it was the original court to issue the order and Mark still lives there. This means Colorado courts would generally defer to Arizona's authority to modify the order, preventing Sarah from trying to get a new, potentially conflicting, order in Colorado.

• Scenario 2: Preventing Conflicting Orders
  Suppose a custody order was issued for young David in New York. David's mother then moves with him to Florida without notifying the New York court or his father. The father, still in New York, files a motion to enforce the existing order. Simultaneously, the mother attempts to get a new custody order in Florida. The PKPA would guide the Florida court to recognize New York as the proper state with jurisdiction, especially if New York was David's "home state" and the father still resides there. This prevents Florida from issuing a conflicting order and ensures the New York order is respected.

• Scenario 3: Modifying an Existing Order When All Parties Have Moved
  Consider a situation where a custody order was initially issued in Illinois for twins, Emma and Liam. Years later, both parents and the children have all moved to Texas. One parent wants to significantly modify the original Illinois custody arrangement. In this case, because all parties and the children no longer have significant connections to Illinois, and Texas has become the children's new "home state," the PKPA would allow the Texas courts to assume jurisdiction and modify the Illinois order. This ensures that the custody case can be handled in the state where the children and parents now reside, rather than forcing them to return to Illinois for every modification.