Fans in Illinois of Kelly Rutherford may have been following her very complicated child custody battle. Initially, a California court ordered that Rutherford’s ex-husband have custody of the children in Monaco after he lost his visa and had to return to the country. Since then, Rutherford has had to fly to Monaco in order to see her children.
Recently, she made another attempt to bring her child back to the United States. However, a California judge ruled that the state did not have jurisdiction over the matter since Rutherford did not live in the state enough of the time to establish residence. This was very frustrating for Rutherford since it was a California court that made the initial decision and she resided in California about the same amount of time then.
The court made no ruling as to the merits of the case nor did it transfer jurisdiction to Monaco. Now, Rutherford may have to take up her battle in New York where she lives most of the time.
Child custody determinations can be very difficult ones to make. In Illinois, they are based on a number of factors that are analyzed to determine what is in the best interests of the child. However, for an Illinois court to have jurisdiction to make that decision, the parents must have resided in the state for a period of time prior to commencement. This is the issue that Rutherford is dealing with now. Most child custody cases are not as complicated as Rutherford’s since, generally, the parents both reside in the same state.
Many parents in Illinois are separated but have children together. In these situations, many times there is a child custody order stating which parent will be making the decisions regarding the children and where they will reside. These decisions can be very complicated and are very fact-specific. Experienced child custody attorneys understand these types of cases and may be able to guide one through the process.
Source: New York Daily News, “Kelly Rutherford loses latest round in custody battle,” Nancy Dillon, July 23, 2015