Bill > HB1406

This bill amends Virginia law to allow a court in the Commonwealth to exercise certain powers related to a foreign divorce decree, even if one party was not a resident of Virginia when the foreign divorce was granted. Specifically, if a foreign court has dissolved a marriage or granted a divorce, a Virginia court can step in if a party who was *not* domiciled (meaning they did not have their permanent home) in the Commonwealth at the time of the foreign divorce initiates a proceeding in Virginia. This is permitted as long as the other party in the foreign divorce *was* domiciled in the Commonwealth when the foreign proceedings began, and that party remains domiciled in Virginia when the new action is filed in a Virginia court. The bill also makes a minor wording change, replacing "without" with "outside" when referring to a divorce decree obtained in a foreign jurisdiction.