Hernandez v. Collura

Decision Date03 September 1985
Citation493 N.Y.S.2d 343,113 A.D.2d 750
PartiesIn the Matter of Edwin HERNANDEZ, Respondent, v. Elizabeth COLLURA, Appellant.
CourtNew York Supreme Court — Appellate Division

Morton B. Dicker, New York City (Hughes Hubbard & Reed, William H. Voth and Harold A. Mandelbaum, New York City, of counsel), for appellant.

Martin Needelman, Brooklyn (Louise Gruner Gans and Florence Roberts, New York City, of counsel), for respondent.

Before LAZER, J.P., and BRACKEN, NIEHOFF and EIBER, JJ.

MEMORANDUM BY THE COURT.

Appeal from so much of an order of the Family Court, Kings County, dated July 12, 1985, which awarded custody of the parties' child to the father subject to a prior pendente lite custody order granted by the Superior Court of Connecticut.

Order affirmed, without costs or disbursements.

Edwin Hernandez and Elizabeth Collura met in New York and began to cohabit in Connecticut in 1982. During that year, Elizabeth gave birth to the couple's son, Edwin, Jr., who is the subject of the present custody dispute. Apparently, the relationship of the parties gradually deteriorated to the point where, in March 1985, Elizabeth returned to the home of her parents in New York. In May, she and her father sent a mailgram to Edwin in Connecticut, requesting that he bring the child to New York for a visit. Edwin complied with this request. Soon thereafter, Elizabeth commenced a family offense proceeding in the Kings County Family Court on May 16, 1985, which resulted in that court's issuance of a temporary order of protection on behalf of Elizabeth and her son on May 17, 1985. Shortly after this, Edwin commenced a custody proceeding in the Superior Court of Connecticut. Edwin also obtained a writ of habeas corpus from the Kings County Family Court on June 18, 1985. The Family Court heard argument on both the family offense and habeas corpus petitions on June 20, and then modified the temporary order of protection to prohibit the removal of the child from New York State. A further hearing on the matter was scheduled for July 12, 1985. However, on June 24, 1985, the Superior Court of Connecticut awarded pendente lite custody to Edwin. At the July 12th proceedings before the Family Court, that court determined that it was without jurisdiction to determine the custody issue and ordered that custody of the child be awarded to Edwin "subject to [the] order of Connecticut". We now affirm that order.

Elizabeth contends that, pursuant to the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction Act (UCCJA), which is embodied in New York's Domestic Relations Law article 5-A, the Family Court had jurisdiction to entertain the custody dispute. Four bases for the exercise of jurisdiction are contained within Domestic Relations Law § 75-d (Vanneck v. Vanneck, 49 N.Y.2d 602, 608-609, 427 N.Y.S.2d 735, 404 N.E.2d 1278; Gomez v. Gomez, 86 A.D.2d 594, 595, 446 N.Y.S.2d 127, affd. 56 N.Y.2d 746, 452 N.Y.S.2d 13, 437 N.E.2d 272; De Passe v. De Passe, 70 A.D.2d 473, 421 N.Y.S.2d 497). The only two which presently concern us allow the exercise of jurisdiction if "it is in the best interest of the child that a court of this state assume jurisdiction because (i) the child and his parents, or the child and at least one contestant, have a significant connection with this state, and (ii) there is within the jurisdiction of the court substantial evidence concerning the child's present or future care, protection, training and personal relationships" or "the child is physically present in this state and * * * it is necessary in an emergency to protect the child" (Domestic Relations Law § 75-d[1][b], [c] ).

Elizabeth has failed to establish a "significant connection" between the child and New York State so as to permit the exercise of jurisdiction. Indeed, the only relevant connections she alleges are that she occasionally brought her son to New York from Connecticut for visits with her parents and that the child resided with her in this State between March and July of 1985. Since the child was born in Connecticut and has resided there substantially all of his life, his short residency in New York, which was procured through Elizabeth's deception, is...

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  • In re Albion Disposal, Inc., 97-CV-0024E(SC)
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    • U.S. District Court — Western District of New York
    • 11 Agosto 1997
  • Chautauqua Cnty. Dep't of Soc. Servs. v. Kenneth M.Y. (In re Bridget Y.)
    • United States
    • New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division
    • 30 Diciembre 2011
    ...G., 156 A.D.2d 59, 66, 553 N.Y.S.2d 689, lv. denied 75 N.Y.2d 1003, 557 N.Y.S.2d 308, 556 N.E.2d 1115; see Matter of Hernandez v. Collura, 113 A.D.2d 750, 752, 493 N.Y.S.2d 343). Therefore, New York courts may assert temporary emergency jurisdiction only “if the immediate physical and menta......
  • S.R., Matter of
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    • New York Family Court
    • 14 Abril 1997
    ...134, 597 N.Y.S.2d 672 (1st Dept.1993); Metcalf v. Turner, 154 A.D.2d 792, 546 N.Y.S.2d 466 (3rd Dept.1989); Hernandez v. Collura, 113 A.D.2d 750, 493 N.Y.S.2d 343 (2nd Dept.1985). New York courts have reserved emergency jurisdiction for bona fide demonstrable emergencies only. In Smith v. D......
  • Perkins v. Perkins
    • United States
    • New York Supreme Court — Appellate Division
    • 16 Noviembre 1987
    ...are conclusory and unsupported (see, e.g., Matter of Tenenbaum v. Sprecher, 133 A.D.2d 371, 519 N.Y.S.2d 273; Matter of Hernandez v. Collura, 113 A.D.2d 750, 493 N.Y.S.2d 343). Finally, the petitioner, as a noncustodial parent, is not entitled to assistance in locating the child from the va......
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