Campbell v. Tardio

A dismissal of an award of custody does not change the date of "commencement of the proceeding" for purposes of determining the "home state" of the child under ORS 109.741(1).

Mother challenged the trial court's exercise of jurisdiction. Mother argued the court lacked subject matter jurisdiction because the child had no "home state" under ORS 109.741(1). ORS 109.741(1)(a) provides that the court has jurisdiction if Oregon "was the home state of the child within six months before the commencement of the proceeding." The mother argued Oregon was not the "home state" because as of 2011, the child had not lived in Oregon within the previous six months. The child had lived in the State of Washington since 2009. However, in 2006, an award of sole custody was granted to the father. In 2009, the parties stipulated to a dismissal of the 2006 award of custody, to facilitate a reconciliation of differences because the Mother threatened not to return the child to the Father. The court found that the dismissal did not change the date of commencement of the proceeding for purposes of determining the "home state" of the child. Affirmed.