Legal Question in Family Law in California
2nd question. I received a sizeable inheritance from the death of my father. I gave permission for my son's father, who was my significant other for 22 years, to take him out of California to Arizona under the agreement, I thought at the time, to visit Arizona to see if he would like it there and establish a place for all of us to live as a family unit. Now my son does not want to return back here to California with me. I am honoring my son's wishes. With giving my permission for my son to be in Arizona with his father, if push came to shove, what recourse would I have to get my son back, if I choose to, and what would happen to his father? Couple of side notes, the paternity that my significant other is indeed the father of our son has been established in the court system. Also, due to the fact that the father was not present at the time of his birth, the father's name is not on the birth certificate. Again, I thank you in advance.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Once the boy has lived with his father in AZ for six months or more, CA loses jurisdiction over the boy and AZ becomes the state of residence. What happens then is a matter of AZ law. Your inheritance from your father has nothing to do with this, nor does the birth certificate. The birth certificate is A source of information regarding paternity, but it is not THE source of that information. A subsequent court judgment of paternity not only is perfectly conclusive evidence of who the father is, it would trump a birth certificate.