I Have Sole Custody of My Daughters and Want to Move Out of State

My question involves a child custody case from the State of: ca.Hey guys! Thanks for the info! I really appreciate it! Since the cost of living in ca. is so expensive, I was considering on moving to another state which is abot 20 hrs. from ca. I have a house, a job that is ready for me and my daughters. Do I have to go to court for that(modifications?)? I know I have to notify the court for that. And for my daughters when they have school vacation I will let them be with their mother. and the holidays as well. Whats gonna happen? I'm gonna go to court to find out the steps on how to come about this situation. what do you think?

You must notify the court and the childrens' parent of the intended move, before you move.

ok. I did notify their mother and she does not agree with the move. If she does take me to court what will happen next? Will it still be ok with the move? Even if I have sole/legal custody? She isn't paying child support till this day. I know she's working under the table because of all the things that she's buying them. Since I do have sole/legal custody all I have to do is notify the court and their mother of the move? Isn't that there is to it? How complicated can it get?

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Quoting CourtClerk

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You must notify the court and the childrens' parent of the intended move, before you move.

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It can get very complicated.
Personally, I just did it. (because it's much harder to sue someone who is in another state...especially far away)

BUT the courts do not take kindly to this. They may get you for contempt. (in a lot of custody orders these days they say that neither parent is allowed to move XX amt of miles away without the other parent's permission.)

You *might* be able to get her permission by telling her if you stay, you are going to have to file for child support. She may not be able to pay you now, but, all of her tax refunds, etc. will go to you.

Good luck!

~Christina

Sole custody doesn't mean you get to move the kids away from their other parent, it means you have the right to make decisions regarding their medical care, legal decisions, schooling, etc. Contrary to what the prior poster has said, it doesn't HAVE to be complicated, and it's not that difficult to sue someone in another state, since the state that you are moving FROM will continue to have jurisdiction until they give it up. That means that you will continue to travel to CALIFORNIA for any court hearings regarding the children. It will actually be easier for the other party and more difficult for YOU. "Threatening" someone with telling them that if you don't allow them to move, you will hold them responsible for what is already their legal obligation is not only a bad idea, it could in fact, rub the wrong judge the wrong way. Besides, I file taxes EVERY year and I don't get a refund. Some people don't like giving the IRS an interest free loan on their money, so depending on a refund isn't the smartest thing to do either. Millions of people in this world know how to make it so they break even or owe very little when they file. It's called financial planning.

I'm not sure how much experience Christina has with the family code, other than moving her children to another state, but I urge you to follow the guidelines set forth by the State of California and file your intended move with the courts. If she opposes, there is a mechanism in place to deal with that. She can file an objection with the court and let the court decide. Since you have a plan in place that will provide for extended visitation, present that all in court. Since mom will remain in CA, it is likely that jurisdiction will remain in CA.

Thanks for the replies. I spoke with my lawyer and we found that it doesn't state we have to reside in ca. or that we can't move out of ca. Is that still gonna be a problem. I've already notified the court of my move and the location. I plan to move soon because of housing and job oppurtunities is ready, like now. The school there is across the street, 15 min. commute to work. What if I just did it anyways and move? Am I gonna get arrested?

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Quoting CourtClerk

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Sole custody doesn't mean you get to move the kids away from their other parent, it means you have the right to make decisions regarding their medical care, legal decisions, schooling, etc. Contrary to what the prior poster has said, it doesn't HAVE to be complicated, and it's not that difficult to sue someone in another state, since the state that you are moving FROM will continue to have jurisdiction until they give it up. That means that you will continue to travel to CALIFORNIA for any court hearings regarding the children. It will actually be easier for the other party and more difficult for YOU. "Threatening" someone with telling them that if you don't allow them to move, you will hold them responsible for what is already their legal obligation is not only a bad idea, it could in fact, rub the wrong judge the wrong way. Besides, I file taxes EVERY year and I don't get a refund. Some people don't like giving the IRS an interest free loan on their money, so depending on a refund isn't the smartest thing to do either. Millions of people in this world know how to make it so they break even or owe very little when they file. It's called financial planning.

I'm not sure how much experience Christina has with the family code, other than moving her children to another state, but I urge you to follow the guidelines set forth by the State of California and file your intended move with the courts. If she opposes, there is a mechanism in place to deal with that. She can file an objection with the court and let the court decide. Since you have a plan in place that will provide for extended visitation, present that all in court. Since mom will remain in CA, it is likely that jurisdiction will remain in CA.

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Quoting sokuha

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Thanks for the replies. I spoke with my lawyer and we found that it doesn't state we have to reside in ca. or that we can't move out of ca. Is that still gonna be a problem. I've already notified the court of my move and the location. I plan to move soon because of housing and job oppurtunities is ready, like now. The school there is across the street, 15 min. commute to work. What if I just did it anyways and move? Am I gonna get arrested?

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If you move without your ex's permission, or a court order it's doubtful that you would be arrested. What is a big possibility though would be for you to be found in contempt, ordered to bring children back and the worst case scenario is that it's possible that you would lose custody.

Those are huge risks, so the better route to take is to go ahead and file a motion with the court asking for a court order allowing the move.

When I planned to move my kids from one side of the US to the other I had to notify my ex-husband with a notice of intent to move so many days prior to us leaving. He had the right to object and did. However, when it came time to him saying he would never agree I told him I was hiring an attorney and would let the judge decide. In court, if left up to a judge, they consider several factors when a parent is moving the children away from another parent. Typically, they look at the reasons for the move and if those reasons will have a positive inpact on the kids or if taking them away from the other parent will have a negative effect. Every situation is different and unfortunately the fact that the parent doesn't pay child support is never a factor in any state. They don't link the two together. I never ended up having to go to court, just saying I was retaining a lawyer was enough for him to back down and agree to a different visitation schedule. It's still a nightmare now dealing with transportation costs and visitation arrangements. Get your paperwork in order to protect yourself! Good luck!

Hello, so even if I have sole/legal custody I still have to file a motion? All I've done so far was notifying the court that I'm moving to my new location.

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Quoting Xena

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If you move without your ex's permission, or a court order it's doubtful that you would be arrested. What is a big possibility though would be for you to be found in contempt, ordered to bring children back and the worst case scenario is that it's possible that you would lose custody.

Those are huge risks, so the better route to take is to go ahead and file a motion with the court asking for a court order allowing the move.

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So on your case, what happened? Did you lose custody of the kids?

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Quoting mmmagique

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It can get very complicated.
Personally, I just did it. (because it's much harder to sue someone who is in another state...especially far away)

BUT the courts do not take kindly to this. They may get you for contempt. (in a lot of custody orders these days they say that neither parent is allowed to move XX amt of miles away without the other parent's permission.)

You *might* be able to get her permission by telling her if you stay, you are going to have to file for child support. She may not be able to pay you now, but, all of her tax refunds, etc. will go to you.

Good luck!

~Christina

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