non-custodial mom/wishes to change custody

Divorced mom,I shared joint custody in CA, had great visitation worked out,then I remarried and moved to FL,with military husband leaving my son at age 5 "1996" with dad in CA., ....Soon after my move, my son was put on ritilin without any testing or eval's done on him,I found out that he was on this drug by talking with his teacher,I don't think dad intended on telling me, for whatever his reasoning, as soon as I knew about him being medicated I put an end to it , until he was properly evaluated and tested, he has been on ritilin since then to date, it has been stated in the psychologist report that my son showed depressive symptoms due to missing me over the hollidays,and to this day is having trouble in school and at home w/dad. I've tried 5 times in the past almost 4 years getting custody switched w/no luck,in NOV. 2000 we will be transfered to san diego CA. for 3 years possibly longer, what could I do to get custody changed/or atleast how much more time should I be able to get for visitation. My son lives in Sacramento CA. we will be about 1 and a half hour flight away or about a 13 hour drive. please help with some advise! Thank You for your time -B-

Once you move to CA, file for a custody change. Court is much more likely to grant custody if kid won't be removed from state. Do you still have joint custody?

You'll need a lawyer in CA.

Tracey

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This is not legal advice and you are not my client. Double check everything with your own attorney and your state's laws.

Thank You for your response, I do still have Joint Legal & Physical custody. In what ways will a Lawyer help me prepare for a custody modification, and could a Lawyer just consult with me on how to prepare myself, If I could not afford to hire for trial representation? Thank You again for your time -B-

You have legal and physical custody? I thought the problem was that the other spouse had physical custody.

The first message said ""
I've tried 5 times in the past almost 4 years getting custody switched w/no luck""

A lawyer will be able to tell you what rights the father may have. An attorney will know what to file and how to proceed to secure actual custody. An attorney will know what is admissible in court. Also, since the father is apparently willing to allow drugs to be given to the child without evaluation, a family law attorney may be able to use that fact to your advantage.
If you have an attorney, you may be able to negotiate an agreement and then file it with the court rather than actually fighting it out in court. [url="http://www.attorneypages.com"]www.attorneypages.com[/url]

Thanks again for your response, I guess what I meant is that I tried a few times to change the primary custodial parent from the dad , to me being the primary custodial parent, I thought that it would physically give me more time with my son,We do share physical custody , but our son spends 9 months out of the year w/dad , guess thats why they call him the primary custodial parent? -B-