I have a support & custody case in SC and live in NY. The CS was transferred to NY. Can I do the same for custody?

Q: I was never married to the dad of my child. The relationship became abusive, I fled while pregnant. We have been in court for 5-6 years. I have taken drug tests, all negative. I send gifts but because of unfounded allegations (I have documentation from local agencies and CPS that prove I am innocent) I was told no contact until tests showing no drugs were given. I provided them every few months, now one or more are inexplicably missing. The case starts not being reached and goes on for years. I’m working class so I spent what money I had on lawyers and not CS. The money owed and the CS case was transferred to my state of NY. Can the same be done for custody? It’s very hard to fight in my case several states away while going to school and working. Do I have an option to get the custody case here? I documented the abuse from my ex and he refuses to let me see our child and rarely sends updates. We have split legal and he never tells or asks anything, I’m on my 2nd lawyer.

A: The jurisdictional law is different for child custody versus child support cases. As a general rule, the “home state” of the child (i.e., where the child has resided for the 6 months immediately preceding the case) is where the custody litigation will need to take place. For a full assessment, contact a Bronx Family Law Attorney to schedule a consultation.