Jumana M. Barabarawi v. Mahaer Abu Rayyan
406 S.W.3d 767
Tex. App.2013Background
- Mother (Barabarawi) and Father (Abu Rayyan) married in the West Bank in 2003, returned to Houston where their son was born in 2004, then went back to the West Bank in 2007; Father divorced Mother in a Sharia court and Mother later returned to the U.S. with the child, resettling in Florida in July 2009.
- Father filed suit in Texas (Nov. 2009) seeking primary custody; Mother challenged Texas court jurisdiction under the UCCJEA, and alternatively argued Texas was an inconvenient forum and that Father engaged in unjustifiable conduct.
- The Texas trial court found default jurisdiction under Tex. Fam. Code § 152.201(a)(4), denied Mother’s motions to decline jurisdiction, named both parents joint managing conservators, awarded primary custody to Father, and ordered Mother to pay child support.
- Mother appealed, designating a partial reporter’s record limited to pretrial hearings; Father objected but the appellate court concluded Mother’s late statement of issues did not prejudice Father and overruled the objection.
- The trial court’s jurisdictional findings were based on (1) neither Texas nor Florida qualified as the child’s home state at the time suit was filed, (2) Texas lacked significant-connection jurisdiction on the record, (3) Florida’s significant connections were not sufficiently proven, and (4) therefore default jurisdiction under § 152.201(a)(4) was appropriate.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument (Mother) | Defendant's Argument (Father) | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Texas properly exercised jurisdiction under the UCCJEA | Texas lacked jurisdiction because Florida (or another state) was the child’s home state or had significant connections; Father failed to prove other states lacked jurisdiction | At time of filing no other state could exercise home-state or significant-connection jurisdiction, so Texas could exercise default jurisdiction | Affirmed: trial court correctly exercised default jurisdiction under §152.201(a)(4) when no other state had home-state or significant-connection jurisdiction |
| Whether Texas should decline jurisdiction as an inconvenient forum (§152.207) | Florida was a more appropriate forum: Mother and child lived there; travel and expense burden on Mother | Trial court had discretion to retain jurisdiction; Mother presented no concrete evidence (schooling, medical, witnesses) showing Florida was plainly more appropriate | No abuse of discretion: trial court properly declined to dismiss on inconvenient forum grounds |
| Whether trial court must decline jurisdiction because Father engaged in unjustifiable conduct (§152.208) | Father’s alleged conduct in the West Bank (divorce and restricting travel) was reprehensible and should bar his invocation of UCCJEA jurisdiction | Father denied such conduct; even accepting Mother’s allegations, conduct was not shown to be aimed at obtaining Texas jurisdiction | Rejected: alleged conduct did not fall within §152.208’s purpose of preventing parents from manipulating jurisdiction for legal advantage |
| Whether appellate sanctions were warranted for Mother’s appeal | N/A (Mother is appellant) | Father sought sanctions claiming meritless/misleading appellate brief | Denied: appellate court found no basis to impose sanctions on the record presented |
Key Cases Cited
- Powell v. Stover, 165 S.W.3d 322 (Tex. 2005) (standard and flexibility for declining jurisdiction under UCCJEA)
- Bennett v. Cochran, 96 S.W.3d 227 (Tex. 2002) (late statement of issues does not bar review absent prejudice)
- In re Forlenza, 140 S.W.3d 373 (Tex. 2004) (jurisdictional inquiry measured at time suit is filed)
- In re Brown, 203 S.W.3d 888 (Tex. App.—Fort Worth 2006) (significant-connection jurisdiction factors)
- In re Alanis, 350 S.W.3d 322 (Tex. App.—San Antonio 2011) (declining jurisdiction on inconvenient-forum grounds in different factual posture)
- In re Lewin, 149 S.W.3d 727 (Tex. App.—Austin 2004) (section 152.208 prevents benefiting from wrongful custody-related conduct)
- W&F Transp., Inc. v. Wilhelm, 208 S.W.3d 32 (Tex. App.—Houston [14th Dist.] 2006) (presumption that omitted record supports trial court where appellant designates partial record)
- In re Oates, 104 S.W.3d 571 (Tex. App.—El Paso 2003) (burden to establish UCCJEA jurisdiction)