Focusing On Family Law – And You
Many residents of Southern California are single parents who have to follow custody and parenting time orders.
This situation may make it more difficult from them to move to another state or to another country. Even a move to another part of California can cause some legal issues with respect to custody and parenting time.
The rules for move-away cases in California depend on a family’s situation
California’s move-away rules come from lots of different statutes and court cases which apply according to a family’s unique circumstances.
As such, the best advice for a parent who wants to move is to speak with an experienced family law attorney.
However, there are some general principles a parent should keep in mind.
As a first step, a parent should read over his or her court orders, as they often spell out and may even expand on rules that cover when parents have to move.
Generally speaking, a parent who has an existing final custody order awarding primary physical custody has the right to move with his or her children. However, the other parent may object that the move will harm the children.
In a situation where the parents have what the law calls joint physical custody, then the parents have to agree to the move, or a judge will have to decide that the move is in the children’s best interests.
When making this decision, the judge will consider a number of factors. One consideration will be whether or not the parent who is not moving will be able to keep up with his or her parenting time schedule.
