An Act To Ensure a Continuing Home Court for Cases Involving Children
Maine Legislature, Session 127, LD 0890
Committee: Judiciary
Sponsors: MONAGHAN, GIDEON, HOBBINS, NOON
Amends: 4 MRSA §152, 4 MRSA §251, 4 MRSA §251-A, 18-A MRSA §1, 18-A MRSA §5, 18-A MRSA §9

Legislative Document 
No. 890 
H.P. 609 
House of Representatives, March 12, 2015 
An Act To Ensure a Continuing Home Court for Cases Involving 
Children 
Reference to the Committee on Judiciary suggested and ordered printed. 
ROBERT B. HUNT 
Clerk 
Presented by Representative MONAGHAN of Cape Elizabeth. 
Cosponsored by Representatives: GIDEON of Freeport, HOBBINS of Saco, McCREIGHT of 
Harpswell, NOON of Sanford. 
Be it enacted by the People of the State of Maine as follows: 
Sec. 1.  4 MRSA §152, sub-§5-A is enacted to read: 
5-A.  Concurrent jurisdiction; exclusive, continuing jurisdiction.  Except as 
provided in paragraph A, original jurisdiction, concurrent with that of the Probate Court, 
of actions for guardianship, adoption, change of name or other matters implicating 
custody or other parental rights brought under Title 18-A. 
A.  The District Court has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction of any matter concerning 
custody or other parental rights of a child, including but not limited to adoption, 
divorce, parental rights and responsibilities, grandparents rights, protective custody, 
change of name, guardianship, paternity, termination of parental rights and protection 
from abuse or harassment, if: 
(1)  An interim or final order concerning the child was entered in the District 
Court and remains in effect; 
(2)  Proceedings seeking an order under subparagraph (1) are pending in the 
District Court; or 
(3)  A matter has been removed to the District Court from the Probate Court 
pursuant to section 251-A, subsection 3. 
B.  The District Court presiding over any matter concerning custody or other parental 
rights of a minor child shall require all parties to disclose whether they have 
knowledge of any interim or final order then in effect concerning custody or other 
parental rights of the minor child, any proceeding to seek such an order or other 
related actions currently filed or pending before any court of this or another state, 
including before a Probate Court.  If the District Court becomes aware that it has 
exclusive jurisdiction in such a matter, it shall notify the Probate Court and take all 
appropriate action to facilitate a transfer of the matter from the Probate Court. 
Sec. 2.  4 MRSA §251 is amended to read: 
§251.  General jurisdiction 
Each judge may take the probate of wills and grant letters testamentary or of 
administration on the estates of all deceased persons who, at the time of their death, 
where inhabitants or residents of his the judge's county or who, not being residents of the 
State, died leaving estate to be administered in his the judge's county, or whose estate is 
afterwards found therein; and has jurisdiction of all matters relating to the settlement of 
such estates.  He A judge may grant leave to adopt children, change the names of persons, 
appoint guardians for minors and others according to law, and has jurisdiction as to 
persons under guardianship, and as to whatever else is conferred on him by law, except in 
cases in which the District Court has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over a child 
pursuant to section 152, subsection 5-A or matters that have been removed to the District 
Court pursuant to section 251-A, subsection 3. 
Sec. 3.  4 MRSA §251-A is enacted to read: 
§251-A.  Other proceedings involving parental rights; transfer of jurisdiction to 
District Court 
1.  Disclosure of orders and proceedings.  The judge of probate presiding over any 
matter involving guardianship, adoption, change of name or other matters concerning 
custody or other parental rights of a minor child shall require all parties to disclose 
whether they have knowledge of any interim or final order then in effect concerning 
custody or other parental rights of the minor child, any proceeding seeking such an order 
or other related actions currently filed or pending before any court of this or another state. 
2.  Transfer to District Court.  If in a matter before the Probate Court concerning a 
child, a judge of probate becomes aware that the District Court may have issued an 
interim or final order concerning the custody or other parental rights of a child, or may 
have before the District Court pending proceedings seeking custody or other parental 
rights of a child, the judge shall contact the District Court to determine whether the child 
is under the exclusive, continuing jurisdiction of the District Court pursuant to section 
152, subsection 5-A.  If the judge of probate confirms that the District Court has such 
jurisdiction, the judge of probate shall transfer the matter to the District Court. 
3.  Petition by party; rules.  Upon petition by a party to a proceeding involving 
guardianship, adoption, change of name or other matters concerning custody or other 
parental rights of a minor child brought in the court of probate, the proceeding may be 
removed to the District Court under such procedures as the Supreme Judicial Court may 
by rule provide if any civil matter involving the minor child is pending or has been finally 
adjudicated in the District Court. 
Sec. 4.  18-A MRSA §1-701, sub-§(a), as enacted by PL 2001, c. 163, §1, is 
amended to read: 
(a).    If a person desires to have that person's name changed, the person may petition 
the judge of probate in the county where the person resides.  If the person is a minor, the 
person's legal custodian may petition in the person's behalf.  If the person is a minor and 
the District Court has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction regarding the minor pursuant to 
Title 4, section 152, subsection 5-A, the proceeding must be filed in or transferred to the 
District Court. 
Sec. 5.  18-A MRSA §5-102, sub-§(a), as enacted by PL 1979, c. 540, §1, is 
amended to read: 
(a).    The Subject to the exclusive jurisdiction of the District Court in matters 
concerning minors as provided in Title 4, section 152, subsection 5-A, the court has 
exclusive concurrent jurisdiction over guardianship proceedings and has jurisdiction over 
protective proceedings to the extent provided in section 5-402. 
Sec. 6.  18-A MRSA §9-103, as enacted by PL 1995, c. 694, Pt. C, §7 and affected 
by Pt. E, §2, is amended to read: 
§9-103.  Jurisdiction 
(a).    The Probate Court has exclusive concurrent jurisdiction over the following: 
(1).  Petitions for adoption; 
(2).  Consents and reviews of withholdings of consent by persons other than a parent; 
(3).  Surrenders and releases; 
(4).  Termination of parental rights proceedings brought pursuant to section 9-204; 
(5).  Proceedings to determine the rights of putative fathers of children whose 
adoptions or surrenders and releases are pending before the Probate Court; and 
(6).  Reviews conducted pursuant to section 9-205. 
(b).  The District Court has jurisdiction to conduct hearings pursuant to section 9-205.  
The District Court has jurisdiction over any matter described in subsection (a) if the 
proceeding concerns a child over whom the District Court has exclusive, continuing 
jurisdiction pursuant to Title 4, section 152, subsection 5-A or any matter that has been 
removed to District Court pursuant to Title 4, section 251-A, subsection 3. 
Sec. 7.  18-A MRSA §9-204, sub-§(a), as enacted by PL 1995, c. 694, Pt. C, §7 
and affected by Pt. E, §2, is amended to read: 
(a).    A petition for termination of parental rights may be brought in Probate Court in 
which an adoption petition is properly filed as part of that adoption petition except when 
a child protection proceeding is pending or is subject to review by the District Court has 
exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over the child pursuant to Title 4, section 152, 
subsection 5-A. 
SUMMARY 
This bill extends the jurisdiction of the District Court to be concurrent with the courts 
of probate over matters concerning custody or other parental rights of a child under the 
Maine Revised Statutes, Title 18-A, including, but not limited to, adoption, termination of 
parental rights, change of name and guardianship of a minor.  The District Court has 
exclusive, continuing jurisdiction over a matter concerning custody or other parental 
rights of a child if an interim or final order concerning the child was entered in the 
District Court and remains in effect, proceedings seeking such an order are pending in the 
District Court or a matter has been removed to the District Court from the Probate Court. 
This bill provides that, in any matter concerning custody or other parental rights of a 
child, the judge of the District Court or the probate judge who is presiding require all 
parties to disclose whether they have knowledge of any interim or final order then in 
effect concerning custody or other parental rights of the minor child, any proceeding 
seeking such an order or other related actions currently filed or pending before any court 
of this or another state.  If the proceeding is in a Probate Court and the judge determines 
that the District Court has exclusive, continuing jurisdiction, the judge of probate must 
transfer the case to the District Court. 
Upon petition by a party to a proceeding involving guardianship, adoption, change of 
name or other matters concerning custody or other parental rights of a minor child 
brought in the court of probate, the proceeding may be removed to the District Court 
under such procedures as the Supreme Judicial Court may by rule provide if any civil 
matter involving the minor child is pending or has been finally adjudicated in the District 
Court.