Legal Question in Family Law in Maryland

Re: Son wants to live with his father but I have custody

The court having issued orders for the custody of the child generally retains jurisdiction. If you are contemplating a change in the child's life then you should contact an attorney. Uniform interstate agreements may apply.

Re: Son wants to live with his father but I have custody

If you're willing to allow this, you should enter into a written agreement with the father that spells out the new living arrangement. The agreement should also state that you will continue to have joint legal custody with the father. This will give you the right to play an important role in your son's life, including giving you access to his school and medical records, and allow you to have some say in the important decisions in his life.

You will also want to spell out any visitation schedule that you will have if that might become a problem later on. Is there going to be a change in any ongoing child support payments? That should be the subject of an agreement as well.

I have seen many situations where a parent allowed the other parent to have the child for a while, thinking she could get the child back any time she wanted, or that she could still exercise some parental control. Inevitably, the absence of a well-prepared agreement regarding custody change caused unnecessary litigation when this happened. You would be well advised to have an experienced family law attorney assist you in drawing up an appropriate agreement. Let me know if I can be of assistance.

Robert Sher

301 986-4555