Custody Case Turned Divorce

It is not uncommon for married couples to separate without getting a divorce. They may be unsure of whether they plan to split long term but want to nail down child support and possession schedules during the separation. Eventually, the parties may want to move forward with the divorce but are not quite sure how to proceed.

The short of it is that if the Divorce case and the Child Support are in the same county, the cases must be consolidated, which means that they are joined together. This is to make sure that multiple courts do not have continuing jurisdiction over the children of the suit. When filing the petition for divorce, the Petitioner must include details on the older Child Support case. If the cases are in the same county, the judge handling the Divorce shall consolidate the two causes into one. The Court handling the Divorce will then be able to rule on the division of the assets and the parent-child relationship.

Note, that a motion to consolidate is only effective when the cases are within the same county. If the cases are in two different counties, a motion for transfer shall be required to move the suit, affecting the parent-child relationship to the county of the divorce suit.

If you have any questions about either a motion to consolidate, or a motion to transfer, our attorneys are here to help. Contact us now!