What You Need to Know Before You Go – Part Two

Before you continue, make sure you go back and read about moving your child out of state after a divorce in Part One of What You Need to Know Before You Go from American Van Lines.

Balancing an Adult's Freedom to Move with the Child's Relationship to the Other Parent: The court has an indebtedness to make judgment calls that are in the child's best interest. While the parent's rights are not momentous, it is the child's relationship with both parents that is of the utmost concern to the court.

How the Effect of the Move on the Child Parent Relationship Can Be Mitigated: The court may consider the functional effect of the move on the parent child relationship and how many antagonistic effects may be lessened. For example, the court will consider the proximity of the out of state move. A move from New York City to a Boston suburb may be granted, whereas a move from New York City to Seattle may be denied. That is because the moving parent can make the child available for regular visitation or custody sharing arrangements from the Boston location but not from Seattle. The court may also consider how often visits will take place, at whose expense the visits will take place and other plans for regular communication between the child and the parent.


Special Considerations: A court will also consider any special needs of the parent or child in making its determination. If the parent or the child needs special attention or medical care, or if the move is for impermanent treatment for a disability, it is possible that the court might be more willing to allow the child to be taken out of the state.

Age and Preference of Child: Children that are older and completely and fully grasp the depths of the entire divorce situation may be able to make their preferences known before the court, and those preferences may be influential in the court's final decision. Obviously, younger children may not have the same privileges to voice their opinions effectively.

The primary responsibility of the court is to consider what is in the child's best interest. While the parents' desires and reasoning for supporting or opposing an out of state move are not inconsequential, they are in no way, shape or form the primary issue. Therefore, any parent who wishes to move a child out of state without the agreement of the other parent should probably be prepared to argue that it is in the child's best interest considering the guidelines outlined above.

Extra Pointers
Just like you would read American Van Lines reviews and ask us thorough questions before hiring us for a move, it is very important that you ask as many questions as possible when you are not sure about something in the court proceedings. A few questions you should ask are:

• “How do I stop my ex from moving to another country with my child?”
• “How do courts in our area view moving due to a job promotion or higher-paying job?”
• “How does remarriage affect custody and relocation issues? What if I am just moving in with that other person?”

A court will also consider any special needs of the parent or child in making its