QUESTION
Can my kids father move her out of state?
Asked on Feb 24th, 2020 on Child Custody - Tennessee
More details to this question:
He's on the birth certificate. I moved out of state after he cheated. He showed no interest in his child. He married. I spent 4 and a half years as her only care provider. He paid child support but rarely kept contact. I had to beg him to call her more often. I move back. I was jobless, they offered me to live with them and take advantage of the transit and school nearby since she'll be starting soon. I took them up on it. I have a job now and I'm saving money to move out. He is emotionally and mentally abusive. Likes to yell and scream and degrade when he feels challenged. He threatened to take her solely based on the fact that he has more money. Says he's going to move her out of state and there's nothing I can do because the courts will choose finance over her mental and emotional wellbeing. I'm scared he's right. Can he take her because he can provide more for her financially? It is the ONLY field that he surpasses me in but it's also key in a lot of court cases I've read up on.
1 ANSWER
That's a lot going on; I'm sorry you have so much on your plate. Father could file an action for primary custody, and he could ask the court to let him move out of state. All of that would be done using the child's best interest as the baseline. There are a lot of factors, but number one is continuity of placement and who has been the primary caregiver to the child. In the real world, I won't say more money doesn't matter, but it doesn't just mean he wins. It's not against the law to be poor.
Answered on Feb 26th, 2020 at 1:03 PM