Family Law in United States of America

See also the Other Organizations and Links section for the USA which has a number of law related links.  (JCRN) = A CRN Japan original essay or compilation of information.

Website of the US Embassy in Japan

USA Specific News

• Support the PARENT Act - proposed federal legislation that to strengthen penalties for international child abduction.

National Laws and Legal Contacts

Much of this discusses Hague Convention issues, which are not related to Japan, since Japan is not a signatory.  But the state and federal laws will apply anyways.  Here is a summary of the abbreviations of the various laws:

1. (JCRN) What to do if I am being denied visitation with my child in Japan

2. (JCRN) List of Recommended Lawyers in the United States

3. (JCRN) International Abduction Related Family Laws - United States : A summary of applicable International Treaties, Federal Laws, Uniform State Laws and Individual State Laws - Look here to see what laws your state supports including whether it has a state specific law or has adopted the The Uniform Child Abduction Prevention Act (UCAPA).  Compiled by the Japan Children's Rights Network.

4. Laws and court decisions from many states- Information from the Library of Congress.  A good place to look for laws from individual states..

5. (JCRN) Classes of Aliens ineligible to receive a US visa - You may be able to use US Immigration law to prevent the abductor, relatives of the abductor, or anyone who assisted the abductor from getting a visa to enter the US.  Could be especially useful if one of these people needs to travel for business.

6. Main US State Department site on International Child Abduction  (A PDF of an old version of this website which may be slightly out of date.)

   • Resources for Judges on International Parental Child Abduction.
   • References, Laws and Reading Lists on International Parental Child Abduction 
   • The Epidemic of Parental Child-Snatching: An Overview : Attempts to Prevent Parental Child Abduction; Applicable United States Laws, and the Hague Convention. A US State Department document written by a US judge.
   • Summary of relevant statues and treaties of USA for international child custody disputes.  Might be slightly out of date so you should look for newer information on the State Department website.
   • Common Law Judicial Conference on International Child Custody; Washington, D.C.; September 17 - 21, 2000. This US State Department document describes how the US handles Hague cases.  It also describes a 1993 Federal kidnapping law that can be used against parents who abduct children to non-Hague countries.  Actually, it seems that this law can be used even if the parent is only obstructing visitation.  This could be a very useful strategy for a US citizen, especially if the Japanese parent needs to travel to the United States. (cached copy)
   • International Parental Child Abduction Prevention Act of 2003.  Allows State Department to deny visas to a wide swath of relatives of any abductor.  Do a google.com search on IPKCA for much more information on the Federal law.

7. National Center for Missing and Exploited Children - a booklet Family Abduction: Prevention and Response (cached copy)

8. The Committee on Missing Children, Inc.

9. Findlaw.com  Good site to get copies of US laws.

10. http://www.childprotectionsolutions.com

11. US Department of Health and Human Services. Administration for Children and Families.  Some contact info for missing children.

12. Interpol Missing Child Legislation page for USA - summary of related laws in USA.

    • USA Interpol page on US DOJ website

13. Juvenile Justice Bulletin The Criminal Justice System's Response to Parental Abduction  (cached copy) U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention (OJJDP), December 2001.  This has a list of most US relevant laws.

14. Parental Kidnapping : Prevention and Remedies; Patricia M. Hoff; Legal Consultant to the American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law; American Bar Association Center on Children and the Law; December 2000.   This document has a good section on how to educate a judge about the dangers.  There is also very specific advice for lawyers of the non-Japanese parent, cautioning them against taking the threat of abduction too lightly.  Show this document to your lawyer. (cached copy)

15. HAGUE CONVENTION ON INTERNATIONAL CHILD ABDUCTION An analysis of the applicable law and institutional framework of fifty-one jurisdictions and the European Union; US Library of Congress Directorate of Legal Research report for the US Congress.  (cached copy)

16. Hague Conference on Private International Law home page

17. The FBI Home Page has information on crimes against children.

General Information

1. (JCRN) US State Department evidence about family law problems in Japan - This describes various evidence available from the US State Department as to the problems with family law in Japan.  It includes a letter sent directly to left-behind parents.  Some may be very effective in a court of law.

2. (JCRN) Special information for members of the US military stationed in Japan regarding The Status of Forces Agreement (SOFA) with Japan and the Uniform Child-Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA).

3. (JCRN) List of the Children section from each yearly US State Department Country Report on Human Rights in Japan, 1999-2006 - includes a link to the full report for each year with information on prostitution, child pornography, trafficking in persons/women, spousal and child abuse, police torture etc. and a summary of widely reported on human rights events for each year.

4. Prevent International Parental Child Abduction

5. Statement of Maura Harty Assistant Secretary, Bureau of Consular Affairs United States Department of State. Before the Subcommittee on Human Rights and Wellness Committee on House Government Reform July 9, 2003.  Addresses many children's issues.
6. National Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges
7. Full transcripts on the House Committee on International Relations hearings for International Child Abduction
8. Hearing of Foreign Relations Committee of the United States Congress on International Parental Abduction; October 1, 1998
9. Information on false statements in court documents. Pleadings aren't made under oath, so nothing contained in them can be perjury. If you deliberately state facts you know to be false, however, you could run into civil liability for abuse of process.   Also, pleadings are signed by attorneys pursuant to Rule 11 under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and similar rules in many or perhaps most state courts. Rule 11 can leave an attorney open to some pretty nasty sanctions if he submits a pleading that includes misrepresentations of fact.

Domestic Divorce, Child Custody and Visitation Information

1. (JCRN) Going to court for Frustration of Visitation
2. American Bar Association Family Law Homepage - many resources on this web site.
3. Large and very good list of articles from American Association of Matrimonial Lawyers, some of which are cached below.

• Making Foreign Divorce Judgments, Orders and Decrees Valid and Enforceable Court Orders of the United States
• Custody Jurisdiction
• Child Support Jurisdiction
• Sample Custody Evaluation
• Cross Examination of Expert Testimony in Custody Cases
• Game Theory in Family Law
• Minnesota Multiphasic Personality Inventory
• Best Interests of the Child and Third Party Custody

Japan Specific Information

1. State Department Memo on International Child Abduction by Japanese Citizens
2. Marriage and Divorce Registration Requirements Concerning Japan
3. How to Serve Process on a Japanese Citizen

Travel Restrictions and Passports for Children

• Requires approval of both parents to get a passport: Yes

• Has watch and notification list for new passport applications for a child: Yes

• Requires entry on domestic passport for dual citizens: Yes (some exceptions, but Japan is not one of them)

  • Penalty: Fines and imprisonment

• Requires permission of other parent when one parent travels alone with children

  • Entry to country:  Reported yes but unsubstantiated

  • Exit from country: No, but see "Exit controls"

• Exit controls at immigration to catch abducting parent: no, but currently (august 2005) being tested at some airports

Resources

• US State Department Fact Sheet on Passports for Family Law Judges and Lawyers (cached copy)

Citizenship Issues

• Permits Dual Citizenship when other citizenship is acquired "automatically": Yes
• Permits Dual Citizenship when other citizenship is applied for intentionally: Yes
• Requires renouncing other citizenship(s) to get citizenship: No (???)
• Permits Dual Citizenship: Yes

  • State Department information on dual citizenship in the United States (cached copy)

  • How one might lose US citizenship instead of receiving dual nationality (cached)

  • Department of State: Dual Citizenship-Security Clearance Implications (cached)

• Children can acquire via:

  • Birth in the US

  • Acquisition from a parent

  • Derivation from a naturalized parent

  • Adoption

Additional Information

• Child Citizenship Act Of 2000 (cached copy) Basic description of the Child Citizenship Act of 2000, which facilitates the automatic acquisition of U.S. citizenship for both biological and adopted children of U.S. citizens who are born abroad and who do not acquire U.S. citizenship at birth.

• US Embassy In Tokyo (cached copy) (日本語)Description of the requirements for citizenship based on birth and what is required to apply.

• State Department Explanation (cached copy) Basic but authoritative source.  Light on details.

• SchultzLaw US Citizenship (cached copy) Unofficial but extremely clear description of acquisition thru Naturalization, birth to a citizen, and derivation from naturalized parents.  (It maybe missing some details for adoption.).  Excellent presentation of how the requirements vary depending on a child's birth date.