Summary
In Daily v. Dombroski, 250 Ga. 236 (297 S.E.2d 246) (1982), this Court held that the General Assembly's passage of the UCCJA did not "destroy" the jurisdiction of a Georgia court to hear a contempt petition filed by a Georgia-resident, non-custodial parent against the non-resident custodial parent for breach of the visitation provisions set forth in the Georgia court's unmodified child custody decree.
Summary of this case from Dyer v. SurrattOpinion
39129.
DECIDED NOVEMBER 16, 1982.
Contempt. Richmond Superior Court. Before Judge Mulherin.
Leiden Hawk, Victor Hawk, for appellant.
William J. Sussman, for appellee.
The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (Ga. Code Ch. 74-5) does not destroy the jurisdiction of a Georgia court to hear contempt proceedings filed by a Georgia-resident, non-custodial mother against an Ohio-resident, custodial father for his breach of the visitation provisions of the Georgia court's child custody decree solely because an Ohio court previously has accepted jurisdiction of visitation modification proceedings filed by father. Had the Ohio court entered an order modifying the visitation provisions of the Georgia court's decree before the Georgia contempt proceedings were filed, the rule, of course, would be otherwise. See Roehl v. O'Keefe, 243 Ga. 696 ( 256 S.E.2d 375) (1979).
This rule is consistent with the public policy underlying the Act, and with our recent decision of Steele v. Steele, 250 Ga. 101 ( 296 S.E.2d 570) (1982). The purpose of the Act is to avoid conflicting modification orders, as in Steele, whereas the present case involves enforcement by a court of its own, unmodified custody order.
It is immaterial that the mother might have sought enforcement of the Georgia decree in the pending Ohio proceedings.
Judgment affirmed. All the Justices concur.