Guam

Hybrid directory framework; factor structure: 16 numbered standards.

Authority

19 Guam Code Ann. § 8404

Source framework

Hybrid directory

Factor structure

16 numbered standards

Operative language

is to be guided by

Catch-all language

n/a

Presumptions in the original survey

Legislative visitation policy under §8404(a)(8): for children and noncustodial parents living on Guam, the court shall, to the greatest degree possible, order more or less equal non-working, non-sleeping, non-school time, subject to (A)–(J). Lanser limits this policy to both parents living on Guam; it is not a general equal-custody presumption.

Child's voice / age rule

none

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"Irreconcilable differences," § 8203(g), defined in § 8219 as "those grounds which are determined by the Court to be substantial reasons for not continuing the marriage and which make it appear that the marriage should be dissolved"

Authority

19 Guam Code Ann. §§ 8203, 8322, 8402. Compiler of Laws, Chapter 8, updated August 11, 2026.

Grounds without a misconduct showing

"Irreconcilable differences," § 8203(g), defined in § 8219 as "those grounds which are determined by the Court to be substantial reasons for not continuing the marriage and which make it appear that the marriage should be dissolved"

Other grounds and proof conditions

6: adultery, extreme cruelty, willful desertion, willful neglect, habitual intemperance, conviction of felony. Desertion, neglect, and intemperance must run one year, § 8218

Separation

None (separation is not a ground)

Timing

Under §8322, after six months from filing the initial petition or complaint and entry of an interlocutory decree, the court may enter final judgment on either party’s motion or its own motion. The court may shorten the filing-based period on a party’s application and showing of cause. Section 8321 requires an interlocutory judgment when dissolution is to be granted. Section 8322 also limits final entry while an appeal is pending and bars it if the interlocutory judgment is reversed.

Relief without dissolution

Section 8402(a) permits an action for permanent support and maintenance without applying for dissolution when either spouse willfully deserts the other or has a §8203 cause of action. It separately permits a wife’s action when the husband willfully fails to provide for her. Section 8402(b) requires the same community-property and homestead disposition as on dissolution when permanent support and maintenance is granted.

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Section 4122 permits a custodial residence change subject to judicial restraint protecting the child’s rights or welfare. No general relocation burden allocation or separate advance-notice procedure identified.

Authority

19 GCA 4122

Court test

general best-interest factors (no relocation-specific list)

Burden classification

no allocation found

Notice classification

no

Trigger classification

no general distance or off-island threshold identified

Effect of silence

No generally applicable deemed-consent procedure identified; court-order terms remain separate

What the court weighs

Sec. 4122: a parent entitled to custody "has a right to change his residence, subject to the power of the proper court to restrain a removal which would prejudice the rights or welfare of the child." Sec. 8404(a)(1): custody by the best interest of the child. (a)(6): custody awards modifiable whenever the child's best interests require or justify. Lanser v. Lanser, 2003 Guam 14 paras. 10-11: the legislative equal-time visitation policy (then sec. 8404(h), now (a)(8)) applies only when both parents live on Guam, so it does not apply once the custodial parent and children live off-island. No case interpreting sec. 4122 in a relocation dispute was found.

Who carries the burden

No relocation-specific burden allocation identified. Section 4122 states a right to change residence subject to judicial restraint of a removal prejudicing the child’s rights or welfare, but no authority identified establishes an objector burden from that wording. Koji discusses the father’s burden as the party seeking custody modification, not a general relocation-objector burden.

Notice and safety exceptions

No separate relocation notice rule identified. The title of the Family Court Rules states current as of December 31, 1994, and Rule 18 concerns custody investigations and reports. No relocation-notice rule identified in the Local Rules of the Superior Court of Guam (October 13, 2025 edition, updated through Promulgation Order No. 06-006-30 of September 26, 2025). Court-order restrictions require a separate check.

Which moves trigger the rule

Sec. 4122 speaks of a custodial parent's change of residence and the court's power to restrain a "removal." Sec. 8404(a)(16) mentions a child "removed from Guam without prior Court authorization," but only as a proviso inside the family-violence clause. No general distance or off-island threshold.

Objections and the effect of silence

No general relocation-specific objection deadline identified. Section 4122 permits judicial restraint of a removal prejudicing the child’s rights or welfare; custody-modification relief has its own conditions.

The modification threshold

Koji v. Neves, 2016 Guam 36 ¶¶3,7,26–30: the parties initially agreed to joint legal and physical custody; the May 2014 order left physical custody with the mother. The father sought modification to become primary physical custodian. Modifying physical custody based solely on his planned move to California, without additional factual findings, was an abuse of discretion. The court reversed, vacated and remanded. Lanser, 2003 Guam 14 n.2, states a persuasive showing of changed circumstances is generally required; the parties apparently stipulated to changed circumstances, although this was not reflected in the appellate record and the issue was not raised on appeal.

Other qualifications

Section 4122 states a custodial parent’s right to change residence, subject to judicial restraint of a removal that would prejudice the child’s rights or welfare.

Burden summary

No general allocation identified

Notice summary

No separate relocation notice rule found; consent or court permission may still be required

Trigger summary

No general threshold identified

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