Terms Used In Vermont Statutes Title 15 Sec. 1401

  • Child: means an individual, whether over or under the age of majority, who is or is alleged to be owed a duty of support by the individual's parent or who is or is alleged to be the beneficiary of a support order directed to the parent. See
  • Duty of support: means an obligation imposed or imposable by law to provide support for a child, spouse, or former spouse, including an unsatisfied obligation to provide support. See
  • Evidence: Information presented in testimony or in documents that is used to persuade the fact finder (judge or jury) to decide the case for one side or the other.
  • 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.
  • Law: includes decisional and statutory law and rules and regulations having the force of law. See
  • Obligor: means an individual or the estate of a decedent that:

  • Responding tribunal: means the authorized tribunal in a responding state or foreign country. See
  • State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U. See
  • Support enforcement agency: means a public official, governmental entity, or private agency authorized to:

  • Support order: means a judgment, decree, order, decision, or directive whether temporary, final, or subject to modification, issued in a state or foreign country for the benefit of a child, a spouse, or a former spouse, which provides for monetary support, health care, arrearages, retroactive support, or reimbursement for financial assistance provided to an individual obligee in place of child support. See
  • Tribunal: means a court, administrative agency, or quasi-judicial entity authorized to establish, enforce, or modify support orders or to determine parentage of a child. See

§ 1401. Establishment of support order

(a) If a support order entitled to recognition under this title has not been issued, a responding tribunal of this State with personal jurisdiction over the parties may issue a support order if:

(1) the individual seeking the order resides outside the State; or

(2) the support enforcement agency seeking the order is located outside this State.

(b) The tribunal may issue a temporary child support order if the tribunal determines that such an order is appropriate and the individual ordered to pay is:

(1) a presumed father of the child;

(2) petitioning to have his paternity adjudicated;

(3) identified as the father of the child through genetic testing;

(4) an alleged father who has declined to submit to genetic testing;

(5) shown by clear and convincing evidence to be the father of the child;

(6) an acknowledged father as provided by applicable State law;

(7) the mother of the child; or

(8) an individual who has been ordered to pay child support in a previous proceeding and the order has not been reversed or vacated.

(c) Upon finding, after notice and opportunity to be heard, that an obligor owes a duty of support, the tribunal shall issue a support order directed to the obligor and may issue other orders pursuant to section 1305 of this title. (Added 2015, No. 16, § 2, eff. June 1, 2015.)