Q: How hard would it be for me to get full custody and approved for relocation out of New Jersey
Her father only sees her every other weekend but he is always working and never home he doesn’t call or communicate with her only when she’s there no interaction other wise not involved in her life really not even school she has always lived with me and I’ve always financially taken care of her but to me he isn’t really apart of her life other then every other weekend never ask what she needs or how’s school
A:
Thank you for such an interesting question. I'm sure it must be very frustrating to be in your situation. There are two kinds of custody, physical and legal. Physical custody is where the child primarily lives and who has parenting time. Legal custody is having the right to make big decisions for the child and have access to records, such as medical, educational and religious training.
It sounds like you already have primary physical custody. Unless the child's father is proven unfit, you will always share legal custody. Moving out of state can be tricky. If you want to go to PA or DE and the father's parenting time will not be greatly impacted that is one thing. In which case you can ask the father to sign a document granting you permission to move. If you want to move a significant distance and you do not think he will agree, then you need to file a motion with the court and seek a court order. The standard is the "best interests of the child".
This is a complicated issue that has changed significantly in the last 2 years due to new case law. You should consult with an experienced family law attorney before proceeding.
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