Q: My court order says I can't leave the county but if I move out of state can I get in trouble?
I was granted sole physical and legal custody of my son in March of 2013. Since then his dad has seen him once on Thanksgiving 2013, his great grandmother's birthday in Aug 2014, and two days in a row in the summer of 2016. He talks to his dad on the phone rarely. The last call was Christmas 2017. There is a total of max 4 calls a year and it's NEVER the father calling it's always my son's grandparents that call my son's dad. I filed a modification to our order but my lawyer advised me to withdraw my petition, that was July 2017. No contact has been made other than the call his mom made to him on Christmas so my son could talk to him.
IF I move out of state and his dad makes no attempt to call or email me about seeing or speaking to my son, can I get in trouble for filing custody papers in the state we move to?
A: Why did your lawyer advise to withdraw your petition? You might get in trouble, but it will depend on the parenting/custody order. You said it only talks about traveling out of the country, than based on that you can travel out of state without a problem, as long as you notify the court of your current address, and keep your contact information current with the courts and the other parent, in this case with grandparents since they have more attachments with the child than the father. You should maintain good relations with the grandparents as they can petition for custody if they feel that you are denying the grandparents rights.
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