IN THE DISTRICT COURT OF APPEAL OF THE STATE OF FLORIDA FIFTH DISTRICT

NOT FINAL UNTIL TIME EXPIRES TO FILE MOTION FOR REHEARING AND DISPOSITION THEREOF IF FILED

SANDRA ANDERSON NUNEZ

- MILLER ,

Appellant ,
v. Case No. 5D 16

- 356 TERRENCE MILLER ,

Appellee

. ________________________________/ Opinion filed January 13, 2017 Non

- Final Appeal fr om the Circuit Court for Seminole County , Melanie Chase , Judge. Delaila Estefano, Coral Gables, for Appellant. Shannon L. Akins, of Law Offices of Shannon L. Akins, P.A., Orlando, and Lauren Roderick Brusca, of The Roberts Family Law Firm, P.A., Orlando, fo r Appellee.

EVANDER , J. Sandra Anderson Nunez

- Miller (“ Former W ife”) appeals the trial court’s non

- final order denying her Motion to Transfer Case to Miami

- Dade County, Florida for Improper V enue and P ursuant to Florida’ s Forum Non Conveniens S tatute. We need not address Former W ife’ s forum non conveniens argument be cause we hold that the trial court should2

have dismissed Terrence Miller’s (“F ormer Husband”) Veri fied Petition to Register a Foreign Decree Order in Florida and his Amended Supplemental Petition to Modify Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage for impr oper venue. The parties were married in Miami on May 28, 2005. They lived in Miami until December 21, 2006 , a t which time they moved to Germany. The parties separated while living in Germany. F ormer H usband relocated to Seminole County and Former W if e subsequently relocated to Miami

- Dade County. Prior to relocating to the United States, F ormer W ife obtained a final judgment of dissolution of marriage in Germany on December 18, 2014. The final judgment awarded her “sole parent al custody” of the parti es’ minor child. On January 16, 2015, F ormer H usband filed a petition for dissolution of marriage in Seminole County. On that same date, he also filed, ex parte, his Emergen cy Verified Motion for Majority Time

- Sharing , to Suspend or Restrict R espondent’s Time

- S haring, for Sole P arental Responsibility Including School Designation, and R evo cation of the Minor C hild’ s P assport and his Emergency Motion for Child Pick

- Up Order. Pursuant to the subsequently entered ex parte emergency pick

- up order, the minor child was removed from F ormer W ife’s custody in Miami

- Dade County and placed with F ormer H usband in Seminole County

. Former W ife immediately filed her own emergency motion to have the child placed back in her custody. On January 26, 2015, th e parties tentatively resolved their competing emergency motions by entering a stipulation providing for a temporary time

- sharing arrang ement. On that same date, F ormer H usband also filed his Verified P etition to R egister a F oreign D ecree O rder in Florida and his A mended S upplemental Petition to M odify F inal3

Judgment of Dissolution of M arriage . In response, F ormer W ife subsequently filed her motion to transfer the case to Miami

- Dade County, as well as her affidavit in support thereof. After a non

- evident iary hearing, the trial court denied F ormer W ife’s motion. Section 47.011, Florida Statutes (2015) applies to actions to establish a foreign divorce decree as a Florida judgment. See Ruscoe v. Ruscoe , 327 So. 2d 93, 94 (Fla. 4th DCA 1976). That statute provides that “[a]ctions shall be brought only in the county where the defendant resides, where the cause of action accrued, or where the property in litigation is located.” § 47.011, Fla. Stat. (2015). Accordingly, Florida courts have determined that an action to establish a foreign divorce decree as a Florida judgment is to be filed in the county where the responding party resides. See McIntire v. McIntire , 352 So. 2d 142, 143 (Fla. 1st DCA 1977) (“[W]hen a complaint to establish a foreign decr ee is brought, F.S. 47.011 controls and the action should be brought in the county where the responding party resides.”); Ruscoe , 327 So. 2d at 94 (holding that in action to establish foreign divorce decree as Florida judgment, the only venue alternative u nder section 47. 0 11 was county where respondent resided). Because Former W ife resides in Miami

- Dade County, that county was the proper venue for F ormer H usband’s petition to register a foreign decree order in Florida. Furthermore, pursuant to section 6 1.13(2)(d), Florida Statutes (2015), the proper

venue in Florida for Former H usband’s A mended S upplemental P etition to M odify F inal Judgment of Dissolution of M arriage was in Miami

- Dade County. Section 61.13(2)(d)
p rovides that the proper venue for an act ion to modify a parenting plan is “[t]he circuit court in the county in which either parent and the child reside or the circuit court in which the original order approving or creating the parenting plan was entered .” Here, the original4

parenting pl an was entered by a German court a nd the minor child resides with Former Wife in Miami

- Dade County. Finally, we reject Former Husband’s suggestion that Former W ife waived her venue argument by failing to raise a venue objection at the time she filed her emergency motion for r eturn of the minor child. F ormer W ife’s emergency motion was filed in response to the Seminole County circuit court exercising emergency jurisdiction over the minor child. Indeed, her motion was filed pri or to the filing of F ormer H usband’s petition to register the German judgment in Florida and his amended supplemental petition to modify. In response to those petitions, Former W ife filed her motion challe nging Former H usband’s venue selection. See B eckles v. Grover , 496 So. 2d 993, 994 (Fla. 2d DCA 1986) (holding that mother’s failure to challenge venue at same time she filed emergency motion to continue an unauthorized hearing did not constitute waiver). On remand, the trial co urt is directed to dismiss Former H usband’s Verified Petition to Register a Foreign Decree Order in Florida and his Amended Supplemental Petition to Modify Final Judgment of Dissolution of Marriage because venue was improper in Seminole County

. REVERSED and REMANDED.

SAWAYA and WALLIS , JJ., concur.