Many states have specific laws that guide the process when a single parent wishes to move either out of state or a good distance from the other parent. Almost all states have some legal framework in place to address this situation.
After all, relocations are highly touchy subjects in the realm of child custody and family law. On the one hand, a simple fact of life is that sometimes parents need to relocate their families, even far away from their current homes or outside the State of Texas. On the other hand, the parent left behind may be faced with not being able to see her children as much as she would like, if at all.
When deciding whether she can relocate, or for that matter can oppose a relocation, the first place a resident should look is her court order. Many times, a judge will enter certain restrictions on relocation as part of the court’s conservatorship order and will do so if it is in the best interests of the child.
Sometimes, these restrictions will include rules about where the parent and child may live. For example, a court may require a parent to remain within 50 miles of Austin. The point of these rules is to compel a parent who wants to move to come back to court in order to get permission to do so, assuming the other parent won’t agree.
Otherwise, whether a parent can move without the permission of the other parent depends on whether a joint legal conservatorship is in force. If the parents have joint conservatorship, one parent cannot move with the child any significant distance without the permission of the other parent.
Relocations are often complicated affairs that can bring a lot of emotions to the forefront. It is usually best for an Austin parent with a legal issue to speak with his family law attorney.