Judge Judith Waksberg

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Respondent moved to dismiss the petition for lack of jurisdiction. Petitioner filed for custody of her granddaughter, who had been residing with respondent, her mother, in Virginia. Petitioner alleged that the child had been abused by respondent's boyfriend, and that respondent subsequently gave petitioner custody of the child. Before the court, the child's attorney stated that she did not feel safe in respondent's home and did not wish to return. In support of her motion, respondent argued that New York lacked jurisdiction because the child had resided in Virginia; respondent further asserted that New York was an inconvenient forum due to the time and expense to litigate from Virginia. The court noted that it initially exercised temporary emergency jurisdiction based on petitioner's allegation that the child was at risk of harm if returned to Virginia. The court ruled that it still had jurisdiction, as no custody proceeding had been commenced in Virginia, and New York had become the child's home state. Finally, the court concluded that it should continue to retain jurisdiction, as the allegations of abuse supported a finding that the child was safer in New York.