Foreign National Divorce with Child Custody - HELP!

[GKV3569]

State: Texas

I am a foreign national, and living in the US married to a US Citizen, and both of us are living in the US. We have a one-year-old son, who I am the primary caretaker of (we are currently separated and living separately). Things have not been working out between my spouse and I, and I am looking to get a divorce with him. I do not have my green card, nor have I applied for it.

Before filing for the divorce, I need to know how this will affect my child - my spouse has a long criminal history (felonies, including robbery). Will I be able to get full custody of my child, even if I return to my home country? My spouse's mother said that she is going to try to get custody, since he is very much incapable of caring for my child (no finances, horrible living conditions, drug use, etc.). He is actually going to jail in the next couple of months for another felony offense.

Can anyone help me, or is this something I need to discuss with a divorce lawyer?

 

[LdiJ]

State: Texas

I am a foreign national, and living in the US married to a US Citizen, and both of us are living in the US. We have a one-year-old son, who I am the primary caretaker of (we are currently separated and living separately). Things have not been working out between my spouse and I, and I am looking to get a divorce with him. I do not have my green card, nor have I applied for it.

Before filing for the divorce, I need to know how this will affect my child - my spouse has a long criminal history (felonies, including robbery). Will I be able to get full custody of my child, even if I return to my home country? My spouse's mother said that she is going to try to get custody, since he is very much incapable of caring for my child (no finances, horrible living conditions, drug use, etc.). He is actually going to jail in the next couple of months for another felony offense.

Can anyone help me, or is this something I need to discuss with a divorce lawyer?

You really need to discuss this with a divorce lawyer. Your situation is quite unique and I believe its really beyond the scope of an internet message forum.

 

[mistoffolees]

Can anyone help me, or is this something I need to discuss with a divorce lawyer?

You need to be talking with a divorce attorney and an immigration attorney.

Bottom line, though, is that the court will decide what is in the best interest of the child. You would need to convince them that taking the child from his home, moving to a different country, and losing all contact with the rest of his family is better for him than staying with his home and father (or staying with the grandmother).

No clue how that would turn out, but that's the challenge you face.

 

[LdiJ]

You need to be talking with a divorce attorney and an immigration attorney.

Bottom line, though, is that the court will decide what is in the best interest of the child. You would need to convince them that taking the child from his home, moving to a different country, and losing all contact with the rest of his family is better for him than staying with his home and father (or staying with the grandmother).

No clue how that would turn out, but that's the challenge you face.

Strike the "staying with the grandmother" bit. Unless both of the parents are unfit, a judge cannot consider grandma for custody. It doesn't matter that one of the parents is a foreign national without a green card. This case will be between mom and dad, not mom, dad, and grandma.

 

[mistoffolees]

Strike the "staying with the grandmother" bit. Unless both of the parents are unfit, a judge cannot consider grandma for custody. It doesn't matter that one of the parents is a foreign national without a green card. This case will be between mom and dad, not mom, dad, and grandma.

Unless you are their attorney and have all the specifics of the case, you really shouldn't be saying what could and what could not happen. Furthermore, you don't know that the court will find the father to be unfit, nor do you know if the mother is fit.

Lots of stranger things have happened. The court may well consider removing the child from his family and his entire world to be a great enough harm to consider it.

 

[nextwife]

Additionally, how would mom keep child in Dad's life and provide regular access to him? Will she pay the cost of transworld visitation and how would that be accomplished?

Is this a Hague signatory nation?

 

[LdiJ]

Unless you are their attorney and have all the specifics of the case, you really shouldn't be saying what could and what could not happen. Furthermore, you don't know that the court will find the father to be unfit, nor do you know if the mother is fit.

Lots of stranger things have happened. The court may well consider removing the child from his family and his entire world to be a great enough harm to consider it.

What part of "unless both parents are unfit" indicated that dad was unfit or mom was fit?

A grandparent cannot be considered for custody unless both parents are unfit. Therefore, unless BOTH of them are unfit, this case is going to be between mom and dad, not mom, dad, and grandma.

 

[GKV3569]

I'm fairly positive that a court would not rule me unfit to take care of my child. Ever since he was conceived I have taken care of myself, with my husband supporting me in no form at all. He even stole from me to support his drug habits. Not to mention while taking care of my child, he took drugs - and this isn't something like prescription medicines or the like. This was crack.

I can't prove to a court that he was, but there is no way I would let him take care of my son. He can't even take care of himself. The only reason he even has a job is because his mother employs him. He can't even get his own apartment because of his criminal history.

Moreover, in order to live with his father/grandmother, the child would have to be taken from his home. The father has been very slightly involved with the child from the beginning, and has never attempted to support me in the upbringing (financially or otherwise), and I very well suspect that his only real interest is derived from his mother's nagging, not out of any real affection to my son.

It is good to know that I won't have to worry about the grandmother taking custody, however - I feel confident that a judge will review my (soon to be ex-)husband's history and my own, and will rule accordingly.

In all honesty, he can't possibly have a chance. He can't support my son in any way, especially with him facing one to two years in jail (currently).

Thank you for the insights - the only real worry I had was if his mother could take custody of my son due to my nationality issues. If nationality does not matter, but the well-being of my child does, then my son will be with me, his mother.