in the state of florida as a custodial mother can i move to another state with my child if i let the father know ahead of time and we are not married and he is not on the birth certificate?
no im not getting child support and no there is no court order,and also he took a paternity test through the child support office and the test came back that he is the father but that was it,we never went to court to put him on the birth certificate and i never gotten any child support payments.iam moving to another state to better myself for me and my kids.i told him that i was moving ahead of time so at least i let him know,but he had a problem with it and he say im trying to take my daughter away from him but he does not help me at all his mother does,and he asked me why cant she stay with him and he raise her and i said no i want my son and daughter to grow up together with me (by the way i have a son and daughter my daughter is his child),but he has no job,hangs with negative people who smokes weed,dont have jobs either,and he just doesnt help with my daughter like i said his mom does.yea he laughs and plays with her and would not let anything happen to my daughter but i need financial help with her.and im struggling down here in florida as a single mother thats why im moving to another state so i can go to school and better myself so my kids can have a better life
I am originally from FL, but I don't know the answer. I would say if you are not married and he is not on the birth certificate, he would have to take a paternity test and start giving $$ if he wants a say. This may be a case where it is easier to as for forgiveness than permission!
If there are no court orders, no court proceedings, nothing filed or pending... you're as free as a bird. You can go where you like, when you like, and not have to say boo to a mouse.
It's just like being married. Up until you (or he) files with the courts... you can come and go and act as you please and no one can stop you. He can literally phone the police, and they'll say to have a nice trip. Until the courts are involved, you are a completely free agent.
((Ditto, so can he. 24/7 he can come into your home, take your/his child, and just leave and not come back. It's not kidnapping until something is filed with the courts AHEAD of time. AKA, if you leave, then he files, it's not kidnapping. If he files and then you leave, it's kidnapping.))
If you really want to move, I WOULDN'T tell him... because it only takes a couple hours for emergency orders to be filed. Once those are filed you're in the system and it will take months before you are allowed to leave, and even then, may not be allowed to take your daughter with you. But that's just me.
I did exactly what you are planning to do. I also was never married and the ex did not sign the birth certificate. In fact he made several excuses every time I tried to get him to. In hindsight I'm SOOOO glad he didn't. I was in NC and I never bothered to check the laws, so I don't know if it was legal and I don't care, but this is what I did: I left in the middle of the night without telling anyone and I called my ex's sister when I got to NH. Because I was in physical custody of my daughter and he did not sign the birth certificate, the law was on my side. The fact that he had to be subpoenaed to get him to take a paternity test and would not voluntarily pay child support strengthened my case. Plus the laws in the state I was in applied, not the state he was in. If you want to leave the only thing that he can legally do to stop you is to take you to court and get a court order preventing it. But if your already gone there really is not much he can do. I don't know what your situation is, but in my case there was a serious level of domestic violence, so I did what I did to protect myself and my daughter, and 15 years later I have NEVER regretted the way I left. You need to decide what's best for you and your children, and if that's moving out of state do it.
Do you have a custody order that establishes paternity, grants you custody, and details child support, visitation, etc.? That will make a difference in what rights, if any, he has.
In Florida, the mother is presumed to have full custody until the above steps are done. If he wants to prevent you from moving, he would have to act quickly to establish those rights.
My sister moved out of FL with her daughter. She was not married to her daughter's father and because they were together until she moved, they never went to court over paternity, support, visitation etc. but he is on the birth certificate. She consulted with an attorney who advised her that she was free to move as she wished, particularly where the circumstances of her move were that she was moving back to our home state for help with child care and better employment opportunities. If you are leaving for good reason, that may help you if he does try to throw up road blocks.
If he isn't on the birth certificate, he has no rights. You can do whatever you want. The best he can do is go to the location you are at and petition for a DNA test in order to be placed on the birth certificate and at that point argue for his parental rights to be enforced.
Although I have heard about cases where this back fires on the mother. If he proves he is loving and capable and you intentionally excluded him from the birth certificate, contact and rights to his child; the judge will often view this as alienation of the parent.
If you know he is the father and think there is a chance he will go to court in order to be involved with the child, I would be proactive. Document offering DNA tests and other ways to get him on the birth certificate. Email him in writing everything you do. It is totally OK to say I want to be 100% sure you he is the father before bringing you into Little Baby's life (even if you are sure). Make him make your appointment and pay for the DNA test. Specify to him you are more than willing to work out an agreeable arrangement for custody afterwards. You still remain in power, you can show you offered him the option without forcing him to go to court, and who knows he might not do anything at all. But no matter what by documenting your 'willingness', you have covered your own butt.
If he's not on the birth certificate and there is no order re custody or visitation, etc., then you can take your daughter anywhere you want. If he wants to try to stop you, he will have to file a petition to establish paternity. I know paternity test was done, but that was for social services - the court does not know about that so that's where he would have to start - establish paternity.
Make your move. I hope things turn out well for you.
He does not have to be on the birth certificate. He has proof he is the child's father. It is irrelevant if he is on it or not.
No matter where you go or what you do he has been tested and is proven to be her biological parent. Therefore he has rights no matter any other circumstances.
He will be held accountable for every penny of child support he is not paying now, clear back to the child's birth. It will eventually catch up with him.
You need to talk to an attorney to find out what you can do. That is the only sure way you can find out what legal rights you have or don't have.
If you chose to move he would still have the right to see his child and can file without you even knowing. All he has to do is say he doesn't know your current address and they will have him publish the notice in the newspaper. If you are not in court he'll get what ever he asks for. He has as much legal right to his own child as you do.
If you have a custody agreement on file and his visitation is specifically written down both you and he will have to abide by it. If you live in another state and he doesn't make much money he may even ask that you be ordered to pay for the transportation of the child to and from his visit since "you" chose to move away from him.
There are so many things that can happen here, an attorney can really help you.
Only someone familiar with FL law can answer your question for sure, however it certainly sounds like nothing legally requires you to live in FL. You might want to think, however, about the likely results of moving further away from the father. Has he been part of the child's life and if you want him to be part of the child's life in the future, what will you need to do for that to happen? You are signing up to raise the child by yourself if you move out of state; of course, maybe you've been doing that already, so that is less important. Meghan R also makes some good points that you do not want it to appear that you're just cutting the father out without giving him a chance to be involved. Good luck with things.
you can do whatever you want if there is no custody agreement.
Yes you can move, but i suggest you get some kind of formal child custody order. It is free to go to mediation with your childs father and set up a visitation schedule. You don't ever have had to have been married to him. YOu should also get child support.
Since you are moving out of the state. I don't know how far away or how old the child is? If he is a loving father dont completly take her away from her dad.
Maybe if her dad could provide transportation for the child she could go see him one weekend a month or durring the summers.
Good Luck
As far as the weed smoking goes, i hope he doesnt smoke or have the child around those people.
If you have NO agreement, and there is NO document establishing paternity (ie no child support, no paternity test etc.) you can do whatever you want. At this point, he's only the father because you both agree he is... legally, your child has one parent.
You should talk to the dad out of respect and just because you want to be a good person and do what's right for your child if there is a relationship between them, but otherwise, you have no obligation.
If there is no court order he pretty much has no rights so you should be able to move where ever you want. The only way you couldn't is if there was a custody agreement that said you would not and you said that you don't so move!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Are you getting child support? Is there a court order for visitation? Each state has different laws, you really need to speak to an attorney.
