Florida Petition For Relocation
Within Florida, when children are involved with a divorce, the idea is to ensure that the child is not going to be negatively affected by the divorce. This includes the living situation and residence of the child. In most cases, the courts prefer that the parents live close enough to allow the child to have both parents actively involved in his or her life. However, there are situations in which one parent feels it would be in the best interest to move away from their current residence.
In these situations, a Florida Relocation Petition has to be filed when moving more than 50 miles away.
There are two ways the relocation request may be handled:
An agreement is in writing and signed by both parents stating that they agree to the relocation. This is the easiest option, as both parents are on board with this move, and it simply has to be approved by the courts.
When one of the parents does not agree to the relocation, then a Petition for Relocation is going to have to be filed with the courts, and this can be a lengthy legal process.
Within the Petition for Relocation, the parent who is wanting to move has to give good reasons for wanting to make the move, and must also explain how they plan to ensure that the child is still actively involved with the other parent. This can be difficult to prove, especially when moving long distances away from the current location.
A petition for relocation cannot be avoided in any case. In the state of Florida, if a parent were to move with a child more than 50 miles away without the court approving of this decision, the parent could lose custody of the child. The court could order the parent who moved without permission to pay court costs and legal fees that are associated with this case. The court may even permanently change the time-sharing schedule and limit the time the parent spends with the child.
Moving to Another State? Learn Your Options First.
The state of Florida is all about ensuring that the child of a couple is not negatively affected when they separate or divorce. The best interest of the child is the main focus, as relocating is often taking the child away from one parent, having him or her lose contact with one parent. For those who are looking to move with their child, you will need help with the petition for relocation. Wendy Norman has years of experience in family law, including Relocation and filing petitions to relocate. These are highly technical in content, and is not recommended that anyone try to navigate this route on their own.
What happens if the relocation took place without serving the other parent with the relocation petition? Or if the relocation petition does not even appear in the court system?
If the relocation took place without following the statutory procedure, the Court may order the child(ren) returned to the jurisdiction.
If the petition is not on the clerk’s website, if a party has a copy of it, that may be sufficient.