Relocation Disputes
Family Relocation Dispute Lawyers In Orange County
Family Relocation Dispute Lawyers In Orange County
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Child custody is an emotionally-charged topic that’s made even more challenging when distance becomes part of the equation. But the reality is that following the end of a serious relationship, it’s not uncommon for an individual to “start over” in many ways. This is a time of change and new opportunities, which may include a move to a different area.
Some parents move for a new career opportunity, while others move to another region so they’re closer to family and friends. Whatever the reason for your move-away, one thing is certain: it can lead to challenges in terms of your child custody arrangement.
If you’re planning a move that will impact your child custody and visitation agreement, you’ll typically need to appear before the courts to request a modification. This is precisely where our child custody lawyers can help, as the family law attorneys of Sarieh Family Law have many years of experience with this type of case.
When you trust your case to Sarieh Family Law, you’ll have an opportunity to work with an experienced family law specialist with a certification from the State Bar of California. Serving Orange County and the greater Los Angeles area, our child custody lawyers know what it takes to get results for our clients. We take an aggressive stance as we work to protect your interests and the interests of your child.
If you’re planning to move away and need assistance with modifying your child custody and visitation agreement, trust the legal team at Sarieh Family Law. Get a free and confidential case evaluation.
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Common Questions and Concerns About Moving and Child Custody in California
A move to another location within California, out-of-state, or even out of the country can necessitate a revision to your child custody arrangement. It’s common to have lots of questions, so our California child custody lawyers have compiled information on a few of the most common questions and concerns on this topic.
What Happens if a Custodial Parent Wishes to Move Away?
In the State of California, a custodial parent — that is, a parent who has sole custody of their child — typically has the ability to relocate their child’s place of residence, assuming there is no threat to the child’s welfare. The court has the authority to intervene if there is a perceived threat to the child’s welfare.
Additionally, the non-custodial parent has the right to challenge the other parent’s plans to move, and they can request a revision of the custody agreement since this constitutes a significant change in circumstances.
In a situation involving joint custody, the parent who plans to move must typically provide evidence that the move is necessary and in the child’s best interests.
The parents will appear in court, and each parent (or their attorney) will have an opportunity to present information and evidence that supports their proposal for a new child custody arrangement. The courts can then make a decision concerning the move and a new custody arrangement.
In cases where a new custody arrangement is necessary, it is commonplace for the courts to address the issue of child support as well. This is because child support is significantly impacted by the child custody arrangement.
Do You Always Need a New Custody Arrangement When Relocating?
Not necessarily. If the parents would be able to uphold their end of the custody agreement, despite the relocation, then a new custody arrangement may not be required.
A new custody agreement is required in cases where the relocation renders the current agreement non-viable. For instance, let’s say that one parent has the child on weekdays and the other parent has the child on weekends. Yet one parent plans to move from California to Texas, necessitating a new agreement since it would be impractical and/or impossible to uphold this custody arrangement while living in different states.
Can a New Custody Agreement Be Decided Out of Court?
It is certainly possible for two parents to negotiate independently so that they can arrive at a new custody arrangement that is agreeable to both parties.
In fact, one of the services that our family law attorneys offer is negotiation and mediation – a cooperative process designed to arrive at a mutually agreeable resolution.
In this situation, your attorney can also assist by helping you to formalize this new arrangement with the courts.
Do I Need a Lawyer to Change My Custody Arrangement for a Move?
Relocating can be a stressful experience; one that’s made even more complex when child custody matters are involved.
Our family law attorneys can play an essential role in your case, working to help you formulate an ideal outcome for your new custody arrangement. Then, our lawyers will guide you through the process of negotiating a new agreement out of court.
When this is not possible, we will represent you in the California family courts, presenting a compelling argument that your move and your proposed custody arrangement is in the child’s best interest.
In short, working with a child custody lawyer will maximize your chances of seeing a positive outcome, with a favorable custody arrangement that will accommodate your relocation.
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Moving to a new location is stressful enough without adding custody issues to the equation. This is where you can benefit from working with a family law lawyer who can help you modify your custody arrangement in a favorable manner in preparation for your move. At Sarieh Family Law, our move-away lawyers work with families throughout Los Angeles and Orange County. We offer years of legal experience and will work with you to get the best outcome for your case. Our elite legal team includes skilled family law specialists who have been certified by the State Bar of California, so you’ll enjoy added peace of mind knowing that you’ve trusted your child custody case to some of the area’s most experienced professionals. The legal team at The Sarieh Family Law is now available to provide you with a free, fully confidential case evaluation. Simply call us. Our client in this case was the mother of the only child of marriage. Our child custody law firm took the case that started in 2009 with the mother filing a Petition for custody and support of a child against the father where the parties reached a stipulation and order awarding the mother sole legal and sole physical custody. Later on the mother filed a divorce case and since the father failed to respond, the mother entered his default in 2010. The divorce case was consolidated with the paternity case. In early 2012, the mother and without notifying the father moved to another State. The father filed a police report and hired a very aggressive Orange County Family Law attorney who filed an emergency motion with the court (ex parte application) and obtained custody for the father and appointed a child custody investigator. The mother was arrested on a DUI despite the fact that her car was parked and she was not driving; the police justified the DUI charge as they found an open container in the car. The child custody investigation report, based on the mother’s DUI conviction and the fact that she moved away without notifying the father, came to the conclusion that the mother should only have supervised visitation with the child and that father should have sole legal and sole physical custody of the minor child. The matter was further complicated by the mother agreeing to “bifurcate” the trial on the custody and visitation issues and the trial was set for the second half of 2013. The mother decided to retain Sarieh Family Law to help her litigate the child custody during the bifurcated trial. Mr. Sarieh, an Orange County Certified Family Law Specialist challenged the entire proceedings from 2010 to 2013. Mr. Sarieh argued that every document filed including but not limited to the child investigation report and every court order rendered after the entry of default in 2010 is null and void. Our firm was very proud of the results and very proud of our judicial officers. The judge agreed with Mr. Sarieh that the court has no jurisdiction since the default was entered in 2010. The trial by default was set in month and our client obtained a dissolution judgment awarding her sole legal and sole physical custody of the minor child. Our client in this case was the father of two children; the parties were not married but cohabited together for over a decade. Throughout their cohabitation both parties worked hard to support their children; the parties lived in an upper-middle class life style during their cohabitation. Shortly after their separation, the mother claimed disability due to Reactive Airway Disease (RAD) she quit her job as mortgage broker, collected State Disability checks and filed Worker’s Compensation claim alleging her disability resulted from the poor air quality at her office. Mr. Sarieh, an Orange County Certified Family Law Attorney, filed with the court a request to vocationally evaluate the mother. Unfortunately the vocational evaluation report concluded that the mother is employable but her employability depended on her health condition, which was beyond the vocational evaluator expertise. In a trial that spanned over the period of months, Mr. Sarieh was able to successfully cross-examine Petitioner’s primary care physician who came to testify on her behalf. The physician admitted that his patient; the mother is able to work under certain conditions. Mr. Sarieh subpoenaed all medical reports from the Worker’s Compensation case and was able to establish the mother’s ability to work. The Court agreed with Mr. Sarieh and stated that the mother has the obligation to support the children; the court imputed income to the mother and the child support was calculated according to the mother’s imputed income even though she was still not working at the time of trial. Our client in this case was the husband, who with the wife’s agreement entered into a stipulated judgment awarding the family residence to the wife; neither party was represented and they entered the judgment with the assistance of a paralegal in Orange County. The parties were married for long time and have adult children from their marriage. The untold story was despite the written judgment; the parties had verbally agreed that once the house is sold the wife will give the husband his fair share of the proceeds. Of course, wife sold the house and refused to pay husband any monies. The husband sought the assistance of Sarieh Family Law; Orange County Divorce attorneys. We began our investigation by examining the judgment, which stated unequivocally that wife gets the house. We were also faced with the legal hurdle that it is almost impossible to set aside a judgment in California if the judgment only dealt with property division and without fraud, duress or undue influence. We noticed on the Resister of Action on the Court’s website that the initial submission of judgment was rejected by the court and that the judgment was returned. The judgment was re-submitted again and the court accepted it. We asked our client whether he knew anything about the rejection of the judgment and he indicated that he knew nothing about this rejection. We asked for a copy of the entire file from the court itself and we did not rely only on what our client gave us. We set the wife’s deposition at our office. We received the ordered copy of the court’s file on the morning of the wife’s scheduled deposition at our office. After a careful examination of the court’s file with our client, we found out the signature on our client’s Declaration re: Service of Declaration of Disclosure was not his. We confronted the wife during her deposition about the falsified document but she denied any involvement and blamed the paralegal. She acknowledged that the document was not signed by our client. We subpoenaed the paralegal to the court’s hearing to prove the wife’s fraud and we retained a handwriting expert to prove that our client’s signature was falsified by the wife herself and no one else. Right before we entered the court room to try our case, the wife’s attorney approached us with a settlement offer giving our client what he was promised. Our client accepted the offer for the sake of the parties’ adult children.Our Orange County Family Law Attorneys Are Committed to Helping You Resolve Child Custody Issues When Relocating
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