Internal prototype — noindexed, not linked from public navigation yet.

Okla. Stat. tit. 43, § 43-551-207

This is the official text of Okla. Stat. tit. 43, § 43-551-207, part of Oklahoma’s Stat. tit. 43, — part of the compiled statutory law of Oklahoma, published by the state as "Stat. tit. 43,." Browse the sections below, each linked to its official government source.

Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.

Inconvenient forum

Official statutory text

INCONVENIENT FORUM

A. A court of this state which has jurisdiction under this act

to make a child custody determination may decline to exercise its

jurisdiction at any time if it determines that it is an inconvenient

forum under the circumstances and that a court of another state is a

more appropriate forum. The issue of inconvenient forum may be

raised upon the motion of a party, the court's own motion, or

request of another court.

B. Before determining whether it is an inconvenient forum, a

court of this state shall consider whether it is appropriate for a

court of another state to exercise jurisdiction. For this purpose,

the court shall allow the parties to submit information and shall

consider all relevant factors, including:

1. Whether domestic violence has occurred and is likely to

continue in the future and which state could best protect the

parties and the child;

2. The length of time the child has resided outside this state;

3. The distance between the court in this state and the court

in the state that would assume jurisdiction;

4. The relative financial circumstances of the parties;

Oklahoma Statutes - Title 43. Marriage and Family Page 152

5. Any agreement of the parties as to which state should assume

jurisdiction;

6. The nature and location of the evidence required to resolve

the pending litigation, including testimony of the child;

7. The ability of the court of each state to decide the issue

expeditiously and the procedures necessary to present the evidence;

and

8. The familiarity of the court of each state with the facts

and issues in the pending litigation.

C. If a court of this state determines that it is an

inconvenient forum and that a court of another state is a more

appropriate forum, it shall stay the proceedings upon condition that

a child custody proceeding be promptly commenced in another

designated state and may impose any other condition the court

considers just and proper.

D. A court of this state may decline to exercise its

jurisdiction under this act if a child custody determination is

incidental to an action for divorce or another proceeding while

still retaining jurisdiction over the divorce or other proceeding.

Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site

Need a lawyer in Oklahoma?

Find a Oklahoma lawyer
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the Open US Law dataset (Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine (Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.