Divorce Support Forums: Moving out of State

First of all , you should seek your ex's approval to avoid the legal arena if possible . If he's amenable to relocation , a revised parenting plan could be submitted to the court to make everything " legal " .

If he won't agree to the move , you'll have to petition the court for permission ( it's called a Gruber hearing ) . If you can convince a judge that relocation is in " the child's best interest " , you can expect that the father will receive extended visitation ( the majority of summer and most major holidays ) and also will be expected to pay ALL the costs for transporation as the relocating party . The legal standards for determining whether relocation is appropriate are :

First the court must consider the prospective benefits of the move, considering non-economic as well as economic factors, to determine if the move is likely to improve substantially the quality of life for the custodial parent and the child. The custodial parent bears the burden of proof with regard to this first Second, the court must consider the motives of both parents. The relevant standard for this prong with regard to the custodial parent is that the move must not be motivated by a desire to thwart visitation by and a relationship with the non-custodial parent. One aspect to this determination is whether the custodial parent will cooperate with visitation arrangements with the non-custodial parent. Third, the court must consider the availability of realistic, substitute visitation arrangements between the child and the non-custodial parent. Gruber v. Gruber, 400 Pa. Super. 174, 583 A.2d 434 (1990).

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Never let your sense of morals get in the way of doing what's right. Isaac Asimov