Referee Dean Richards Mendelson sitting in the Family Court located in Rockland County, New York, recently allowed a mother to relocate with the parties children from Rockland County to New Jersey.
The father brought a lawsuit seeking custody of his child. He also sought a court order stopping the mother from relocating to New Jersey. The father had been a resident of Rockland County since 1982. The mother also resided in Rockland County until 2011.
In 2011, she moved to Hazlet, New Jersey. In her pleadings she alleged that the father had agreed and consented to the relocation of that their child.
Father Never Consented to Relocation
The father testified in court he did not consent to the relocation. The Court, in its decision, stated the mother had attempted to initially mislead the court by hiding the fact that she had relocated. However, the court found that the child’s best interest would be served by granting joint legal custody to the parents and residential physical custody to the mother.
The court allowed the mother to continue to maintain her residence in Hazlet, New Jersey. The Court held this was subject to a relocation clause that prevents her from moving any further from the father then she currently is now. The Court found the child had acclimated to living in New Jersey. The child was attending school in New Jersey and had developed new friends in New Jersey. The Court also found the child was involved in a variety of after school activities in New Jersey.
The Court, in its decision, indicated had custody been given to the father, it was unlikely he would have enrolled the child in similar activities in Rockland County to replace the ones the child was enjoying while living in New Jersey.
Conclusion: Mother Allowed To Stay In New Jersey With The Child
In this case, the best interest of the child trumped the father’s right to maintain a close relationship with his child.
About Elliot S. Schlissel
