2018 Ohio 1613
Ohio2018Background
- G.G., born in West Virginia in 2011, was placed under a West Virginia family-court guardianship in 2011 assigning Elizabeth (the child’s aunt) as guardian and granting grandmother Tamalie weekly visitation and annual Christmas visitation.
- Elizabeth and G.G. moved to Ohio in 2012; Tamalie remained in West Virginia and later sought modification and contempt relief in West Virginia in 2016.
- While the West Virginia proceedings were pending, Elizabeth filed an adoption petition in Belmont County, Ohio in October 2016; Amanda (the mother) had executed a surrender before Ohio filing.
- Belmont County Probate Judge Costine granted the adoption on December 15, 2016 without notifying Tamalie or the West Virginia court. West Virginia learned of the adoption via the Ohio decree.
- Tamalie filed an original action in the Ohio Supreme Court seeking a writ of prohibition to require Judge Costine to vacate the Ohio adoption decree on the ground that West Virginia had exclusive continuing jurisdiction under the PKPA and UCCJEA.
- The Ohio Supreme Court granted the writ, finding Judge Costine patently and unambiguously lacked jurisdiction because the West Virginia court was exercising exclusive continuing jurisdiction and the PKPA required full faith and credit to the prior visitation/guardianship order.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Ohio probate court had jurisdiction to enter adoption while WV custody/visitation case was pending | Garrett: West Virginia had exclusive continuing jurisdiction under PKPA/UCCJEA; Ohio lacked jurisdiction and failed to give notice | Costine: Probate court has exclusive jurisdiction over adoptions in Ohio; adoption validly filed in Ohio | Held: Ohio court patently and unambiguously lacked jurisdiction because WV retained exclusive continuing jurisdiction under PKPA/UCCJEA; adoption vacated |
| Whether the PKPA required Ohio to give full faith and credit to WV visitation/guardianship order | Garrett: PKPA mandates enforcement of valid out-of-state custody/visitation orders and bars modification absent WV relinquishing jurisdiction | Costine: (implicit) Ohio adoption did not modify WV order or WV had not acted to prevent adoption | Held: PKPA applies; the adoption was a “modification” of the prior visitation determination and therefore prohibited while WV retained jurisdiction |
| Whether lack of notice to contestant (Tamalie) affected jurisdiction under PKPA | Garrett: No notice given to contestant as PKPA requires; reinforces jurisdictional defect | Costine: (implicit) procedural issues do not cure subject-matter jurisdiction | Held: Failure to provide reasonable notice under PKPA further undermined Ohio exercise of jurisdiction; jurisdictional defect is patent |
Key Cases Cited
- State ex rel. Corn v. Russo, 90 Ohio St.3d 551 (2001) (extraordinary writs issued with caution; standards for prohibition)
- Justis v. Justis, 81 Ohio St.3d 312 (1998) (PKPA requires states to afford full faith and credit to valid child-custody orders)
- State ex rel. Morenz v. Kerr, 104 Ohio St.3d 148 (2004) (Ohio courts lack jurisdiction when another state is exercising jurisdiction consistent with PKPA/UCCJA/UCCJEA)
- In re Adoption of Pushcar, 110 Ohio St.3d 332 (2006) (Ohio probate courts have original and exclusive jurisdiction over adoptions)
- Thompson v. Thompson, 484 U.S. 174 (1988) (Congress enacted PKPA to avoid jurisdictional competition among states)