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Can custodial parent move out of state?

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Capt Kirk

Guest
My ex-wife and daughter, at this time, live on the other side of town from me, in Georgia. The ex is now telling me, she and my daughter (age 7), are moving to Tenn., to be with her new boyfriend. My daughter tells me, she does not want to go.
I want to know what I can do. Please help. Thanks!!!
 


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deefran

Guest
Contact a lawyer IMMEDIATELY....send a certified letter to ex stating that you are objecting to the move and then petition the courts for a hearing based on your objections...
Is there a custody order in place?? Do you have regular visitations with the child?? With no custody order, ex could move and court case be much more lengthy and costly. If you have regular visitations and you play an active role in child's life this could help your case.
Your ex would have to prove to the courts how the move would be in the best interests of the child...
 
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Capt Kirk

Guest
Thanks, and all prayers appreciated...

Thanks for your all your advice, and for letting me know that I'm not the only one out here that has to put up with such a......... person. I will take your advice, and try to keep you updated.
Thanks again, and I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas...
and a Happy New Year to all.:D


Extra info: Joint custody,
I pay child support every week,
Visitation-every other week-end, one day through the week, split holidays, etc.
 
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ccarter

Member
I was browsing and the post about custodial parent leaving the state caught my eye. My husband's ex took his son and moved to Germany. Now the child was four years old and husband was NOT notified in any way. She returned to the states when child was ten and had apparently been drawing welfare, which we have now paid back. I thought that was illegal, not only did she leave the state she left the country. We could not find her, and no one was willing to help us, but it did not take long for them to come after my husband for back child support for those 6 years, which we have almost got paid off now.
Were there legal steps we could have taken once she returned? It has all but ruined my husband and his son's relationship, that's a long time for a child to be without his father.
 
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lcollins

Guest
Capt Kirk:
I would definitely hire an attorney to object to the move. You paying child support and taking active role in child's life will be a big plus. If however, the move is ok'd, I would petition the court to make the ex responsible for transportation from the new location. You can argue that the move will put undue burden on you to have to travel so far. I would also fight for more visitation should the move take place, i.e. longer weekend visits, also the standard two weeks in the summer, and longer visitation at Christmas while schools are out. Ex may change mind when they see you're not going to let it go without a fight. Ex may not want to give up any more additional time for you to have the child.
 
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Capt Kirk

Guest
I spoke with lawyer, he says the only thing I can do, since there is nothing in the d-papers to say she can't move out of state, is either file a change of visitation or get a custody battle started (which could cost $25k-30k). He dosen't recomend the custody battle, because in Habersham county, Georgia, the judges always lean toward custody for the "mother" regardless of what's in the best interest of the child. It sounds sad, but according to numerous people, and my original attorney, it's true.
As far as my summer visitation stands right now, I'm suppose to get 3 consective weeks, which her mother refuses to let me have. She says my daughter doesn't want to come, and she is not going to make her. My daughter tells me, she doesn't want to move to Tenn., but her mother says she has no choice. She's going!!!
What's a dad to do???
 

jyoung

Member
Although Georgia is different from Florida, you can petition the court, on your own, to try to prevent the move. I just finished a year and a half battle to do the same and it's now in the judge's hands to decide if the move is in the best interests of the child.
It's lots of hard work but if you research, ask everybody you know for help and make the effort it is not impossible.

You have to do what you have to do for the kid.


Start here:

http://www.ganet.state.ga.us/cgi-bin/pub/ocode/ocgsearch?docname=OCode/G/19/9/1&highlight=custodial|parent|relocation
 
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Capt Kirk

Guest
Response to: jyoung

I wonder if the ex telling my daughter that I don't want to see her would apply?
example:
Last Thursday, 12-27-01,the ex called from Tenn. and ask if I wanted to get my daughter at 6pm, the 28th, for an extra weekend. She then ask if I would give her an extra week's child support, in advance. I told her, no. She hangs up on me. On the 29th, I talk to my daughter, and she tells me,"Momma said, you didn't want to see me and hung up on her." I told her that was not true. She said she knows.
Sometimes I wish I was an attorney!!!
 
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Capt. Kirk

Guest
UPDATE...

Last week my ex-brother-in-law called, said the ex-wife was missing. She was suppose to have went to Tenn. boy-friends house (5-hr.drive). Nine hours later, she still has not arrived. BF calls XBIL and puts him up to calling me. To see what I know I suppose... I later find out, my daughter did not attend school all last week. Her teacher knows more about move to Tenn. than I do. She has been tardy 90% of the time, and they have had to call some baby-sitter to pick her up from school on several occasions, in the last 3 months.(my phone number has been removed from the emer.# list)
What should I do now???

A week ago last Friday,1-11-02, I had to get the police to go with me to her apartment to get my daughter. We were suppose to meet at 6pm, she calls at 6:50pm to tell me she is going to be late. Things got a little heated, since she is so inconsiderate toward my son (6 mo.), and step-son (5 yrs.) being cooped up in a car for this amount of time.
She told the policeman that she had just gotten off work, was her excuse. My daughter told me, "She don't even have a job, she (ex) was in the bath, and wouldn't answer the phone." My daughter didn't mention the move to Tenn. that whole week-end.
 
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prayerkaren

Guest
In the same boat

Hi,

I live in AR and i to am in the same boat as your ex wife. However the difference is, my ex has hardly nothing at all to do with our four children. He is so wrapped up in his new wife whome he left us for and her children that he may have contact with the kids once a month, and has only kept them over night one time since May 18th of last yr. It breaks my heart to see when a parent rather mother or father does what they can to keep a child from the other parent. I can understand it if that other parent is causeing some type of harm to the child but if not, then the child needs the parent as much as the parent needs that child and in keeping them from one another that custodial parent is only hurting their kids.

Now, to address the issue of moving out of state. I too am wanting to move from AR where all that is here is me and daddy, no other family, back to CA where i'm originally from where not only my family live but my fiance also lives out there. NO I WILL NOT be living with him. I have strong convictions about that, and therefore will have my own place to live with my children, but my main goal is to get them closer to some family. They have family out this way on their daddy's side who lives in MO and TX, however they've not seen them in two yrs since he left. When they ask to go with him on holiday's to see them he refuses to let them yet takes his wife and her new children. This is extreemly difficult on them, especially since they have very little contact with him as well, aside from all my talking to him and practically begging him to spend more time with them and get their relationship back on track.

Anyway, I was told i need to drop a line to the court and my ex husband stating what i want to do. Does anyone know where i can find such a letter online that can at least give me some kind of idea of how the letter should go? I will do whatever i can to insure my ex husbands ability to have constant contact with our children. The last thing i want is to keep them from him, but they also need their family. To the man who posted that website address. Where did you originally find that at? I am wanting to do all of this on my own but have not had much luck. My husband told me right infront of the kids that if the judge allows us to move then he is wiping the slate clean with them and will have no further contact what so ever, he has also stated that if i drop the child support he dont' give a flip (nice way of saying it) where we go or what we do, he just wants the child support dropped.

P.S. All of our children want to go home and be closer to family.


Thank you,
Karen in AR
 

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