Ellsworth v. Heath

This interlocutory transfer without ruling from the Merrimack County Probate Court (Hampe, J.) requires us to determine whether the probate court or the superior court has jurisdiction over custody disputes between unwed parents when there are no guardianship issues. We hold that the superior court has exclusive jurisdiction.

The plaintiff, Clint J. Ellsworth, and the defendant, Wendy Heath, are the natural parents of a minor son. The parties have never been married. They did, however, live together from January 1992 until June 1993. Their son was three months old when the parties separated.…