Does Father Have the Right to Relocate with Child Without Mother's Input

A female friend of mine is in need of help so I thought I'd post here to ask for advice. Her child's father is relocating to another state and has custody of their child. Is it legal for him to relocate without getting her permission or is he legally allowed to do that and keep her from seeing her own child? I've heard that if he's gone for a certain amount of time without her saying anything then he doesn't have to come back but I'm not sure.If anymore information is needed I'll be glad to ask her.

It's impossible to say without knowing where the parents are located, and without knowing the actual details of the current court orders.

She lives in Memphis TN and he moved to Arkansas. He didn't even tell her what city he was moving to. She states that the court orders are that she see her child every weekend but she hasn't seen her in 3 weeks.

When did Dad move?

What - word for word (minus names) - does Mom's order actually say about relocation? And though it might be a delicate question, is there a reason why Mom doesn't have primary custody?

Quote:

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Quoting Dogmatique

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When did Dad move?

What - word for word (minus names) - does Mom's order actually say about relocation? And though it might be a delicate question, is there a reason why Mom doesn't have primary custody?

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The first two questions are very important. Mom needs to be on top of things regarding what her order says, or if they say nothing on the issue, then what the laws are in her state. And the sooner she acts, the better. Letting enough time go by for dad to establish residency in the new state will likely result in him being allowed to stay there. And if mom acts asap, she shows the importance of the issue to her. Sounds like she needs to find out exactly where dad is, though. That can get a little trickier.

And though it might be a delicate question, is there a reason why Mom doesn't have primary custody? - This last questions is just repugnant (sorry to Domatique). A better question, however, I believe, is can mom make a case that the child's interests would be better served by staying in their own community with mom?

FatherWhoWon, with all due respect, if the mother had a clue what her rights were, the questions would not be asked of the forum. Cause I wanna see her, does not convey the information required to assist her. Back to the OP, David80, with respect, please answer all the questions asked by Doggie.

Repugnant or not, it's a valid question. The answer might make a quite a difference to Mom's realistic options.

You don't have to like it. :)

Mom does not have to be a "bad mother" to not have primary custody of her child. The perception that that is a likely enough possibility to ask the question is hurtful to both mothers and fathers. I'm not saying its not a realistic question, though, just that it is more helpful to mom (and less hurtful) to look at it differently. If mom is active enough in the child's life and serious enough about her role as the child's mother to actively pursue this, then it seems more likely that mom is a very fit parent and has a good chance of preventing the relocation of the child. However, since mom is not actually here herself, and someone else seems to be doing her research for her . . .

Actually, the presumption in TN is in favor of the relocating parent. The burden of proof would be on Mom to convince the court why the move shouldn't go ahead.

read more here

You should know from my post hx that I'm not really one to mince words. I'm sorry you took offense to the way I worded the question, but I still believe it needed to be asked.

(You might want to save that link actually - it's VERY handy information to have around! I recently double checked the info, based upon the actual document being a few years old, and it's still accurate).

Now you are getting it FatherWhoWon. Many times, you are only offered partial or slanted info. You must request enough to cut to the facts of the situation.

Thanks for the link... Relocation is something that I myself am considering, in a few years perhaps. However, the laws in my state are not so kind to a relocating parent. We shall see.

Either way, mom needs to take some serious and prompt action, and OP hasn't come back yet. Perhaps he (or even better, mom) will. Better yet, mom is investigating where child and dad are, and perhaps looking into an attorney. If dad left town without intentions of letting her know where he was taking the child or consideration to their relationship, that could be a point in her favor.

Despite the fact that I myself would like to move away from my daughter's mother, I know that is partly selfish on my part considering her mom's ability to see her. Something I have considered and am still considering. I feel for the mother in this situation, if she is truly involved in her child's life.

You're very welcome :)

Relocation is always going to be difficult on one parent. It's hard on the child, too, but if the relocation is honestly in the child's best interest (rather than the parent's best interest - unfortunately we see more of the latter than the former on the legal forums...I'm so jaded, aren't I? :o ) I'm fine with that.

Then again, divorce and breakups in and of themselves are tough on the kids. Such is life, I suppose.