| Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: |
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| | This Act, the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and | Enforcement Act (UCCJEA), revisits the problem of the interstate | child almost thirty years after the Conference promulgated the | Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA). The UCCJEA | accomplishes two major purposes. |
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| | First, it revises the law on child custody jurisdiction in | light of federal enactments and almost thirty years of | inconsistent case law. Article 2 [Me. cite subchapter II] of | this Act provides clearer standards for which States can exercise | original jurisdiction over a child custody determination. It | also, for the first time, enunciates a standard of continuing | jurisdiction and clarifies modification jurisdiction. Other | aspects of the article harmonize the law on simultaneous | proceedings, clean hands, and forum non conveniens. |
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| | Second, this Act provides in Article 3 [Me. cite subchapter | III] for a remedial process to enforce interstate child custody | and visitation determinations. In doing so, it brings a uniform | procedure to the law of interstate enforcement that is currently | producing inconsistent results. In many respects, this Act | accomplishes for custody and visitation determinations the same | uniformity that has occurred in interstate child support with the | promulgation of the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act | (UIFSA). |
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| Revision of Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act |
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| | The UCCJA was adopted as law in all 50 States, the District of | Columbia, and the Virgin Islands. A number of adoptions, | however, significantly departed from the original text. In | addition, almost thirty years of litigation since the | promulgation of the UCCJA produced substantial inconsistency in | interpretation by state courts. As a result, the goals of the | UCCJA were rendered unobtainable in many cases. |
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| | In 1980, the federal government enacted the Parental Kidnaping | Prevention Act (PKPA), 28 U.S.C. § 1738A, to address the | interstate custody jurisdictional problems that continued to | exist after the adoption of the UCCJA. The PKPA mandates that | state authorities give full faith and credit to other states' | custody determinations, so long as those determinations were made |
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