Anyone tried to move a child away from custodial parent in Hawaii? (lawyer)

[stuckonmaui]

Did you go to court and how did the judge rule? Age of children? What island? Thanks in advance!

ETA Oops I meant "Anyone tried to move a child away from a NON-custodial parent in Hawaii?"

[Balad1]

Originally Posted by stuckonmaui

Did you go to court and how did the judge rule? Age of children? What island? Thanks in advance!

ETA Oops I meant "Anyone tried to move a child away from a NON-custodial parent in Hawaii?"

Why wouldn't you go to the police and report that the non-custodial parent failed to return the child which in effect is kidnapping?

[Sweetbeet]

This is not legal advice, and I am not your lawyer (though I am a lawyer, I just don't have an attorney-client relationship with you, or anyone else on this board; this post does not create one; I have no duty to advise you well or properly, there is no confidentiality, etc.). Get a lawyer (but not me, I don't do family law).

It will depend on many, many things. When did you come here? Why? How old is the child? What is his/her relationship with the other parent like? Why are you moving? Where? Will life really be better for THE CHILD there (taking into account the loss of time with the other parent - which you may consider a plus, but the law generally sees as a detriment to the child)? Do you have family there? Here? How will the other parent visit with the child? Who will pay? Can the other parent viably move to wherever you want to go (i.e., follow you)?

The standard is the best interest of the child, and having a relationship with BOTH parents is generally considered a big 'plus' when determining the child's best interest. So, you need some pretty convincing reasons why the benefits of this move outweigh that.

I am very familiar with this kind of case in NY, but not in HI. But I *think* the standards are probably similar. Here, though, it might depend a lot more on the particular judge you get. You should get a local lawyer who is familiar with all the judges (depending on the island, there may only be one or two (here on Kauai there is one Family Court judge), on Oahu there are MANY), and can craft your case to play to the particular judge's sympathies or prejudices. But, it sounds like maybe your case has already been put in, and you are just waiting for the decision. In that case, well, there's not much I can say except good luck, I hope it all works out for you.

[stuckonmaui]

Thanks. I do have a case pending, I was just wondering if anyone had had personal experience and would be willing to share. I have covered all the bases of "best interest" but mostly it comes down to dad not really working, but wanting us to stay here, too. It's just not realistic. In order to survive here we both need to be doing our best to support the kids. It's kind of an unusual situation in that he seems to be able to come up with money to fight me on stuff but not to support the kids. Lots of shell game stuff w/ money and I just need to go out of survival.

[nhzero]

When we moved *TO* Hawaii from Oklahoma, that's the only reason the judge needed to terminate our guardianship of my niece. Nevermind that the mom had seen her maybe 4 times in 5 years and didn't have a place to live...

[stuckonmaui]

Originally Posted by nhzero

When we moved *TO* Hawaii from Oklahoma, that's the only reason the judge needed to terminate our guardianship of my niece. Nevermind that the mom had seen her maybe 4 times in 5 years and didn't have a place to live...

That must have been a terribly hard decision to make

[bresdo]

I am in a similar situation and going to start going through the court route in the next few months here on Kauai. My "X" gave me permission to move here and now is demanding to have my 2 girls move back to LA. They have been living with me ever since we split apart about 4 years ago and I don't want to move or give them up. Speaking to people about the subject there was this other Mother that went through a battle in Utah and got permission to move here because she had a good job lined up. So I would imagine the same could be for you.

[stuckonmaui]

Originally Posted by bresdo

I am in a similar situation and going to start going through the court route in the next few months here on Kauai. My "X" gave me permission to move here and now is demanding to have my 2 girls move back to LA. They have been living with me ever since we split apart about 4 years ago and I don't want to move or give them up. Speaking to people about the subject there was this other Mother that went through a battle in Utah and got permission to move here because she had a good job lined up. So I would imagine the same could be for you.

How long have you been in Hawaii? From what I understand, the magic number is 6 months. Once the children have been in one place for 6 months, that is their residence. Has he had you served with something? If you are close to the 6 month mark and you can stall and physically keep them here until the 6 months are up, you will be in a much much more powerful position to argue that this is where they shall stay. Do you have the permission he granted for the move in some documented form? If the kids have been in Hawaii more than 6 months then Hawaii should have jurisdiction (may have to formally establish this?) and he would have to come HERE to do anything legally. Have you looked into Legal Aid? I believe they have it in all states and it's great if you qualify. It's lawyers who do pro bono work for people who qualify financially.

Thanks for the info on the other case. The job thing seems like it would be important in these times. I know I just can't make it here (my industry does not even exist here) unless their father gets a job and tries to help it's pretty much a given that we'll have to go where I can support the children. I hate that it has come to this and actually really like it in Hawaii but it's hard to argue with dollars and cents.

[7th generation]

Because this is a relocation forum, a topic such as this, has no place here.
Good luck in your situation.

Edit: City-Data does not allow legal advice in the forums as this is a liability issue. It is best for the member to contact an attorney.
Thanks,
7th