Legal Question in Family Law in California
I have a three-year-old son and I am not with the mother. We have never been married and have no formal agreement on custody. Our time has been split more or less equally with him and expenses the same. She would like to take him out of the counrty for an extended period of time and she is asking for me to sign over full custody. Of course I am not comfortable with this idea, but she claims a letter of consent or something similar is not sufficient or will be a hassle. Can someone impart some light on this issue, please?
A good Father.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Do you even have a custody judgment or enforceable declaration of paternity? If not you need to get that in place before he leaves the country. If you do have that, a letter agreement signed and notarized by both of you will be sufficient. Make sure he gets a passport too. You will both have to go to the post office or passport agency for that, but it's well worth it, and may be required anyway.
I would suggest that you file a paternity action to obtain a judgment and establish your rights as a legal matter. This advice is applicable whether there is a current is agreement or not. If something would happen to the mother, you will need to establish those rights, and it is much easier to do that now. It is beneficial for a number of reasons. You can come to an agreement, however, you should have a judgment that establishes your legal rights. Good Luck, Pat McCrary
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