Q: Can my visitation order be moved from Ohio to Florida?
My son and I moved to Florida in 2013. All the visitation and child support paper work was done in Ohio right after we moved (that’s where his dad lives and where we moved from). Recently Florida took over the child support portion because I lost my job and needed to get my son on state insurance so apparently they automatically transfer support because of that. So now the child support portion comes through Florida. My son is now 11 and is requesting the right to choose if he wants to go or not to his Dads, in order to do this I would have to go back to Ohio courts which I just can afford to go back and forth without a job and I also have health complications. Will the courts transfer the rest of the case here, the visitation and custody portion? Traveling is just not an option financially, my ex knows that, taunts me with it and simply refuses to listen to our sons requests so I have to go this route. Is this possible or probable? Do I talk to the Ohio clerk or Florida clerk?
A:
Once your child has been in the State of Florida for more than 6 months, you are able to domesticate or establish your case in Florida and request a modification. You do not need to go back to Ohio to make changes. But what your son wants is not a good enough reason not to send him to his dad's house. You need to demonstrate that a change is in the child's best interest.
Good luck!
Bruce Alexander Minnick agrees with this answer
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