Effective September 1, 1999, Texas NO LONGER will automatically give custody jurisdiction to ANOTHER STATE when the child has been RESIDING in THAT STATE for MORE THAN SIX MONTHS.

This is a MAJOR CHANGE; the previous law (the Texas version of the UCCJA) FORCED Texas to GIVE UP custody jurisdiction after the CHILD had been OUT OF TEXAS for 6 MONTHS.

Texas has replaced the UCCJA with the UCCJEA (Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act) that DELETES the 6 month language in the previous law. The new law is §152.001 et seq. of the Texas Family Code.

This is strong incentive for anyone who resides with a child out of state with the current order (usually the Decree of Divorce) that designates Texas as home state OR WHERE THE OTHER PARENTS CONTINUES TO RESIDE IN TEXAS needs to FILE A CUSTODY CASE IN THE OTHER STATE BEFORE SEPTEMBER 1 to have a good shot as defeating Texas' jurisdiction that "springs to life" on September 1.

This article is certainly not telling anyone about the law of other states, or implying that anyone residing out of state with a child after a Texas divorce should do anything, much less filing a case in that state. The article merely points out that if a parent and a child had been residing outside of Texas for, say, 10 years, that parent and child could be forced to return to TEXAS to litigate child custody if the other parent is still in Texas. Hence, the "heads up" on the major change in the law.