Child Support Enforcement ENFORCEMENT

CHANGE OF VENUE

GENERAL INFORMATION

This topic contains information on the following subjects:

1. An overview of the change of venue process;
2. Administrative change of venue;
3. Judicial change of venue.

CHANGE OF VENUE OVERVIEW

Change of venue is the movement of a court order from the jurisdiction of one county to another. For CSE cases, a request for change of venue must meet certain criteria. (See below.)

A change of venue can be made by order of the court, or in certain situations, through administrative action.

If a court order for child support contains language that specifically allows administrative change of venue, the Clerk of Court transfers the order for a CSE case to another jurisdiction at the request of the CSE agency without the necessity of a court order. G.S. 50-13.4 (e1) provides for this procedure.

Any party involved in the CSE case can contest this change of venue by filing a motion in the cause in the receiving county.

NOTE: All support order documents in ACTS contain appropriate language for administrative change of venue. It is important to review all orders in the case to determine if the enabling language is present.

If a court order for child support does not include language that specifically allows administrative change of venue, a Motion for Change of Venue must be filed with the court of the county where the order resides. A hearing is scheduled and the matter is heard. If the motion is granted, an Order for Change of Venue is issued by the court. The court file is then transferred to the Clerk of Court in the new county.

At times, the party who requests a change of venue also requests a modification to the order (such as the reinstatement of a suspended order or an increase or decrease to the existing order). In these situations, it is the responsibility of the transferring county to file the motion for change of venue only with the county where the order resides. It is the responsibility of the receiving county to file any other motion for the case.

CRITERIA FOR CHANGE OF VENUE

For CSE cases, a request for change of venue must meet the following

criteria:

• CSE must receive a WRITTEN REQUEST from either the client or noncustodial parent (NCP) in the case;
• Neither the client, child nor NCP continues to reside in the county where the order is entered;
• Either the client, child or NCP currently resides in the county to which the venue change is requested; and
• The addresses of all participants in the case are known.

Unless ALL of the preceding criteria are met, CSE does not proceed with change of venue.



ADMINISTRATIVE CHANGE OF VENUE

EX: An order exists in County A. One participant moves to County B and requests that the order be moved to that county.

A change of venue request can be made to either County A's CSE or County B's CSE. CSE must determine if the case meets the criteria for change of venue.

If the request is made to the new county of residence, County B's CSE must:

1. Open a new CSE case, if none currently exists, and reassign it to County A's CSE.
2. Notify County A’s CSE.
3. Mail the original request from the participant to County A's CSE and retain a copy.

When County A's CSE receives an appropriate change of venue request either from County B's CSE or directly from either participant in the case, the responsible worker must:

1. Open a new CSE case, if none currently exists.
2. Generate the Intrastate Administrative Notice For Change of Venue (DSS-4708) and submit it to the Clerk of Court.
3. Document that a request has been made to the Clerk of Court to change the venue.
4. After seven (7) days, the system reminds the responsible worker to contact the Clerk of Court to determine if the venue change has been made.
5. When the venue change has been verified, document that the venue is changed.
6. Reassign the case to County B's CSE and notify County B's CSE supervisor that the CSE case has been transferred.
7. Mail the CSE paper file to County B's CSE to provide a history for the CSE case. It is also recommended that County A notify County B’s supervisor that the case file is in route.

When County B receives the case, the new responsible worker must:

1. Contact County B's Clerk of Court to confirm receipt of the order and obtain the new docket number.
2. Enter the new support order in the case record in ACTS.
3. Generate and send the Change of Venue Employer Letter (DSS-4738) to advise the NCP's employer of the new docket number and new CSE agency responsible for managing the case.
4. Send the Intrastate Notice of Transfer (DSS-4707) and Notice of Court Order (DSS-4477) to the client and noncustodial parent, as notice of the change of venue and transfer of the case to County B's CSE.
5. If a party wants to contest the change of venue after receiving the Intrastate Notice Of Transfer (DSS-4707), he/she must file the action in the receiving county to which venue has been changed.

JUDICIAL CHANGE OF VENUE

EX: An order exists in County A. One participant moves to County B and requests that the order be moved to that county.

A change of venue request can be made to either County A's CSE or County B's CSE. CSE must determine if the case meets the criteria for change of venue.

If the request is made to the new county of residence, County B's CSE must:

1. Open a new CSE case (if none currently exists) and reassign it to County A's CSE.
2. Notify County A's CSE.
3. Mail the original request from the participant to County A's CSE and retain a copy.

When County A's CSE receives an appropriate change of venue request either from County B's CSE or directly from either participant in the case, the responsible worker must:

1. Open a new CSE case, if none currently exists.
2. File a Motion For Change Of Venue (DSS-4654) with County A's Clerk of Court and schedule the matter for the next available session. The CSE attorney represents the case at hearing.
3. Obtain a copy of the signed Order(s). Verify with County A's Clerk of Court that the order is transferred.
4. Document these activities in the case record and send copies of the court order(s) to the client and noncustodial parent.
5. Complete all other appropriate activities.
6. Reassign the case to County B's CSE. Notify County B's CSE supervisor that the CSE case has been transferred.
7. Mail the CSE paper case file and a copy of the order(s) to County B's CSE. It is also recommended that County A notify the County that the case file is in route.

If the court denies a request for change of venue, the requestor must decide whether to continue CSE services in County A or close the CSE case.

When the case is received in County B, the new responsible worker must:

1. Obtain the new docket # from County B's Clerk of Court and enter it in the case record.
2. Generate and send the Change of Venue Employer Letter (DSS-4738) to advise the NCP's employer of the new docket number and new CSE agency responsible for managing the case.
3. Send the Notice of Court Order (DSS-4477) to the client and NCP, as notice of the change of venue and transfer of the case to County B's CSE.