State v. Dupepe
State v. Dupepe
Opinion of the Court
On application of the State of Louisiana, we grant certiorari in order to consider the issue of whether the Juvenile Court has jurisdiction to entertain a reconventional demand filed against a claimant in a URE-proceeding
STATEMENT OF THE CASE
The State of New Mexico filed a URESA action, pursuant to LSA-R.S. • 13:1641 et seq., which was forwarded to Louisiana because the obligor, F. Clancy Dupepe, resides here. The original action sought to collect child support arrears in the amount of $16,010.00 due under a New Mexico order which incorporated a previous Orleans Parish Civil District Court order. Ms. Du-pepe sought the services of New Mexico Support Enforcement Services to collect the total arrears due under the CDC and New Mexico orders. No ongoing support was sought as Mr. Dupepe now has custody of the minor children. New Mexico filed a URESA action to make the foreign judgment executory and to collect the arrears.
Mr. Dupepe was served with the petition for registration of a foreign support order on October 22, 1991. He filed no motion to stay or motion to vacate within twenty days. He did subsequently, and untimely, file an answer and reconventional demand. The reconventional demand requested that the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court order Ms. Dupepe, a New Mexico resident, to pay child support. On March 13, 1993, the court heard the state’s rule for contempt and the defendant’s answer. The court held a trial on the motion which is the subject of an appeal recently filed. The state here contends that the Orleans Parish Juvenile Court does not have jurisdiction to entertain a reconventional demand against Ms. Dupepe in the present URESA case rather than filing an independent URESA action. We agree.
DISCUSSION AND LAW
The State of New Mexico was the initiating state in this URESA action. The
Because the minor children now reside with Mr. Dupepe, Ms. Dupepe may now well be considered an obligor as well as an obligee in this matter. However, she is not an obligor in the instant URESA action in Orleans Juvenile Court. Mr. Du-pepe is entitled to file a claim in Orleans Parish Juvenile Court, which that court would then have to forward to New Mexico (Ms. Dupepe’s state of residence) for enforcement. Alternatively, because personal jurisdiction is retained for purposes of modification of a support order, even if a party moves to another state, Mr. Dupepe could file for a modification of the support order in Civil District Court pursuant to long-arm jurisdiction. Prince v. Prince, 389 So.2d 823, 824 (La.App. 3d Cir. 1980).
However, no basis exists for the exercise of personal jurisdiction over Ms. Dupepe, a New Mexico resident, in Orleans Parish Juvenile Court in response to this URESA action which originated in New Mexico.
Considering the above, the writ application of the State is granted and the recon-ventional demand against Ms. Dupepe is hereby dismissed.
REVERSED.
Case-law data current through December 31, 2025. Source: CourtListener bulk data.