Adoptive GA Dad Can’t Litigate Custody When GA Case Still Pending

Tennessee child custody case summary on jurisdiction in divorce.

Adedamola Olagoki Oni v. Cassondra Tucker Oni

The mother in this Tennessee case was the biological mother of two minor children.  The adoptive father had adopted the children in Georgia in 2017.  At the time of this litigation, the children resided in Tennessee with the biological mother.

About a month after the adoption was finalized in Georgia, the adoptive father filed a petition in the Hamilton County, Tennessee,  court to register and enforce the Georgia adoption order.  That court first granted a temporary order enrolling the Georgia decree, and enjoining the mother from removing the children from Hamilton County until further order.

The mother then filed a motion to dismiss.  She argued that the Tennessee court lacked jurisdiction under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA) since she had previously been granted custody in Georgia and that the adoption order came from Georgia.  The Tennessee court agreed, dismissed the case, and removed the order preventing the mother from taking the children from the county.

The adoptive father then appealed to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.  He was prosecuting the appeal without an attorney, but the appeals court determined that his argument boiled down to the fact that the Georgia adoption case was concluded, and therefore no longer had jurisdiction to determine custody.

But the appeals court noted that the Tennessee judge had consulted with the Georgia judge, who noted that the “final order” regarding adoption was not a final order with respect to custody.  The attorneys for both parties had participated in this telephone conference call with the two judges.

Based upon this information, the Tennessee judge concluded that the Georgia custody litigation was ongoing, and that the Georgia court was the most convenient forum.  Under the UCCJEA, these factors meant that the case should proceed in Georgia, and that the Tennessee case should be dismissed.

The appeals court found no error in this ruling.  Therefore, it affirmed the lower court’s order dismissing the Tennessee case.

No. E2017-01636-COA-R3-CV  (Tenn. Ct. App. Sep. 4,  2018).

See original opinion for exact language.  Legal citations omitted.

To learn more, see Child Custody Laws in Tennessee.

See also Tennessee Parenting Plans and Child Support Worksheets: Building a Constructive Future for Your Family featuring examples of parenting plans and child support worksheets from real cases available on Amazon.com.