Legal Question in Family Law in California

When you file and serve your paternity petition, include with that a motion for custody visitation and support as well as a request to move to the location that you reference. Please meet with an experienced family law attorney to explore your legal options.

You are not legally REQUIRED to do anything. You say the father is "on the birth certificate" and since you don't have any existing orders, that must mean you both signed the Declaration of Paternity. That makes him the legal as well as biological father, but it does nothing as far as parenting rights between you. So either one of you can take the child anywhere in the US without violating any legal requirments. As you may have already figured out, however, that means that he too can take the child and move away. That is why it is important for unmarried parents to obtain custody and support orders. Just because you are in court doesn't mean you have to fight and be angry. Adoptions are done in court, and everyone is happy, right. You and he are free to work out the details and then just ask the court to make it the custody and support order. That way everyone has real rights and knows what they are, and can always change things by agreement and obtaining a modified order, but if there is ever disagreement, you have the order to fall back on, and the right to ask the court to decide the disagreement if needed. So meet with a family law attorney and have them help you through the details of how to do this.