You may want to move out of the state after your divorce. Or perhaps you just want to move to another location within the state, but a significant difference away from your ex.
But you’ve heard that you can’t move without providing the court with a good-faith reason to do so. Is this true? Why would the court be involved at all, and why do you have to provide a reason to move?
Modifying the child custody arrangement
It’s not moving that is a problem, necessarily. The issue is that your child custody arrangement may have split custody between you and your ex. If this just means legal custody, it likely doesn’t matter where you live, and you can move at any time.
But if you share physical custody, then it’s a problem because the move may prevent your ex from seeing the child. This would violate their rights as a parent, and the court may have to intervene – potentially taking your custody rights away.
You need to provide a reason to justify the move so that the court will consider modifying the child custody arrangement. This is the only way to move without violating your ex’s rights, along with your child’s rights. The court just wants to know why you are moving to show that you’re not intentionally trying to make shared custody harder. Potential reasons for the move could include going to school, accepting a job offer, moving closer to extended family members or looking for a more appropriate cost of living.
Modifying court orders is complex and must be done correctly after a divorce. Be sure you know what legal steps to take.