The State Bar Association of North Dakota Spring 2013 Gavel Magazine | Page 29

NORTH DAKOTA FIRST STATE TO ENACT UNIFORM DEPLOYED PARENTS LAW
On March 21, Governor Jack Dalrymple signed the Uniform Deployed Parents Custody and Visitation Act into law, making North Dakota the first state to enact this legislation. District Judge and SBAND President Gail Hagerty and University of North Dakota School of Law Associate Professor Bradley Myers were the two commissioners from North Dakota who helped draft this legislation for the Uniform Law Commission. The legislation, which was completed last summer, provides standards and procedures for resolving visitation and custody issues affecting military personnel and their families, which may include resolution of matters in intrastate, interstate, and international contexts. “We devoted a lot of time to writing the language,” says Myer