G.K. v. O.K.

Summary

The Hawaiʻi Intermediate Court of Appeals vacated orders dismissing G.K.'s divorce proceeding and denying relief and reconsideration. The court held that the Family Court did not demonstrate compliance with Hawaiʻi Revised Statutes § 583A-207 when declining jurisdiction based on inconvenient forum, including consideration of the statutory factors and the authority for dismissing the divorce proceeding. The case was remanded for further proceedings.

Holdings

1. The family court did not demonstrate compliance with HRS § 583A-207 because it failed to allow and evaluate the parties' information under the statute and failed to make findings addressing all relevant statutory factors before determining that Hawaiʻi was an inconvenient forum.
2. The family court did not identify legal authority supporting dismissal of the divorce proceeding, and HRS § 583A-207(d) permits the court to decline jurisdiction over a child-custody determination incidental to a divorce while retaining jurisdiction over the divorce proceeding.
3. The dismissal order, order denying relief, order denying reconsideration, and findings of fact and conclusions of law were vacated and the matter was remanded for further proceedings.

Questions Presented

1. Whether the family court complied with HRS § 583A-207 before declining to exercise Hawaiʻi jurisdiction over the child-custody dispute on inconvenient-forum grounds.
2. Whether the family court had authority to dismiss the entire divorce proceeding rather than decline jurisdiction only over the child-custody determination.
3. Whether the family court's orders denying relief and reconsideration could stand despite the absence of findings addressing the statutory inconvenient-forum factors.

Disposition

vacated