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Good Evening all
My partner and I split up six months ago (she left me for another man taking our 8 year old son with her), after messing me around regarding contact with my son. I took her to court where she was given a residency order, and I was given a contact order to have my son at least two nights a week, and time in the holidays etc. I was also given a Parental Responsibility order. My ex partner is now threatening to move away so I wont see my son again (this is because she wants more money!). Can she just do this? and what action can I take?
Many Thanks in advance
Hi Paul,
welcome to the forum, I will ask our legal partners, the Children's Legal Centre to pop by this thread and give you some proper advice.
It's horrible when a parent tries to control access as a means to extracting more money out of the other parent. I feel for you I really do. Did the court set maintenance, is the CSA involved or do you have a private agreement in place ?
Gooner
Hi Thanks for the reply
My Ex Partner left me with a considerable amount of joint debt which she has not contributed to, and left me with no option but bankruptcy so I was unable to make any payments towards my son. She went down the CSA route and their assesment was only about a third of what she was expecting. I have my son two nights a week and she is supposed to share school holidays but this has not happened either.
Dear Paul5257,
Thank you for contacting the Children’s Legal Centre.
A resident parent is able to move anywhere they wish within the UK without the consent of the other parent, even if that parent has Parental Responsibility. If the mother wished to move abroad with your child she would require your consent or a court order allowing this if you have Parental Responsibility, although would be able to do this if you did not have Parental Responsibility.
As you have a contact order in place, the mother should be conscious of attempting to comply with this, and is able to apply back to court for variation if she is moving from the area and contact will no longer be practical. The court would then decide what contact is appropriate in consideration of any relocation.
You are able to apply to the court for a Prohibited Steps Order to attempt to stop the mother from moving; however it is rare that this is granted if the court feels that there is sufficient reason for the move and that it is not purely to restrict the contact.
If the mother does deviate from the court order at all without reapplying to court or your agreement, you are able to apply for enforcement of the order, and the courts are able to penalise the mother for non compliance if they feel this is appropriate. It is likely that the court would consider the relocation during these proceedings and may alter the contact that is stated in the order if this is no longer practical.
You are also able to apply for residence of your son if you would prefer for him to live with you, and again it would be for the court to make the decision regarding this based on what is thought best for your son after considering all the circumstances.
It is not possible to predict what the court will order, especially if the mother does move from the area with your son, and it would be for you to ensure that all your concerns are raised to the court so that they can consider these when making their decision.
We hope that this information is useful to you. Should you require further advice please contact the Child Law Advice Line on 0808 8020 008 and an advisor will be happy to help you.
Kind Regards
Children’s Legal Centre
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