Legal Question in Family Law in Maine
Leaving state with a child
I am considering leaving my husband due to infedelity and many other little reasons. One of the big ones is that he expects our 2 yr old to be grown up and punishes her for small things that he does not like but are ok for a 2 yr old to do. I want to go home to the state of Maine and then divorce him after. I am from maine and have been married to him for 2yrs. We do not agree on anything. We were not married at the time of my daughters birth but he sighned her bith certificate. Can he get me for kid napping? Can I file for a divorce down here and costudy with out it taking 6-12mo if we agree? thank you for your time
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Leaving state with a child
There are four grounds for divorce in Louisiana:
1 Conviction of a felony;
2 Adultery;
3 Filing after living separate and apart for six months; and
4 Filing, then living separate for six months.
Although adultery is supposedly one of the fast grounds, it is usually expensive to prove and emotionally painful to litigate.
I usually reccomend the fourth option because it brings the child care issues to court quickly but costs less financially and emotionally.
Taking your child to Maine will not cause you to be charged with kidnapping. Unfortunately, until you get a court order giving you custody he can take the child back and you won't be able to charge him with kidnapping either.
Because almost every state has uniform child custody jurisdiction laws, Louisiana would continue being the state with jurisdiction for at least six months. It is better to file in Louisiana, then get either the father's consent or the court's permission to move to Maine.
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