Montana Code 40-7-204. Temporary emergency jurisdiction
40-7-204. Temporary emergency jurisdiction. (1) A court of this state has temporary emergency jurisdiction if the child is present in this state and the child has been abandoned or it is necessary in an emergency to protect the child because the child, or a sibling or parent of the child, is subjected to or threatened with mistreatment or abuse.
Terms Used In Montana Code 40-7-204
- Abandoned: means left without provision for reasonable and necessary care or supervision. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Child: means an individual who has not attained 18 years of age. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Child custody determination: means a judgment, decree, or other order of a court providing for the legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a child. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Child custody proceeding: means a proceeding in which legal custody, physical custody, or visitation with respect to a child is an issue. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Court: means an entity authorized under the law of a state to establish, enforce, or modify a child custody determination. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Home state: means the state in which a child lived with a parent or a person acting as parent for at least 6 consecutive months immediately before the commencement of a child custody proceeding. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Person: includes a government, a governmental subdivision, an agency, an instrumentality, or any other legal or commercial entity. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Montana Code 40-7-103
- Statute: A law passed by a legislature.
(2)If there is no previous child custody determination that is entitled to be enforced under this chapter and a child custody proceeding has not been commenced in a court of a state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203, a child custody determination made under this section remains in effect until an order is obtained from a court of a state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203. If a child custody proceeding has not been or is not commenced in a court of a state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203, a child custody determination made under this section becomes a final determination if it so provides and this state becomes the home state of the child.
(3)If there is a previous child custody determination that is entitled to be enforced under this chapter or a child custody proceeding has been commenced in a court of a state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203, any order issued by a court of this state under this section must specify in the order a period of time that the court considers adequate to allow the person seeking an order to obtain an order from the state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203. The order issued in this state remains in effect until an order is obtained from the other state within the period specified or until the period expires.
(4)A court of this state that has been asked to make a child custody determination under this section, upon being informed that a child custody proceeding has been commenced in, or a child custody determination has been made by, a court of a state having jurisdiction under 40-7-201 through 40-7-203, shall immediately communicate with the other court. A court of this state that is exercising jurisdiction pursuant to 40-7-201 through 40-7-203, upon being informed that a child custody proceeding has been commenced in, or a child custody determination has been made by, a court of another state under a statute similar to this section, shall immediately communicate with the court of that state. The purpose of the communication is to resolve the emergency, to protect the safety of the parties and the child, and to determine a period for the duration of the temporary order.