Legal Question in Family Law in Massachusetts
child custody
My son and his girlfriend, met on vacation in Hawaii, after they both returned to the states in which they live, My son in MT and the mother of his child in MASS, the mother called stating she was pregnant. My son moved to Boston to be with her and child and now things are not working out so great. The baby is 4 months old and my son's name is on the birth certificate as her father, although no paternity has been established. He is now wanting to leave Mass, and come home to Montana, can he take his daughter, and if not what way should he go about getting custody, at least shared custody. I believe this woman purposely tried to get pregnant, as she is a nursing student and has the common sense to know when her fertile period was. Besides this, she drinks alcohol and breast feeds my granddaughter, although at this time she is attempting to cease breast feeding. Can my son ever get shared custody living clear across the US from the mother. They were never married. Thank you for your reply
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: child custody
Massachusetts law presumes that physical and legal custody of a child born out of wedlock will be with the mother. This is a simplified explanation of the statute, but it is the gist. Your son has little chance of obtaining physical custody of a four-month-old child born out of wedlock unless the mother is unfit. This requires more than a glass of wine now and again; it requires serious alcohol or substance abuse, serious psychological issues, or serious child abuse/neglect. I am not seeing these in your posting.
If your son takes the child without a court order, he should be prepared to have entanglements with the legal system, including the police. He DOES NOT HAVE any legal or physical custody without a court order, so he WILL BE ENGAGED in "custodial interference," our sterilized words for parental kidnapping. This is a crime in Massachusetts.
Your son should get legal advice before he does anything on his own. I am available for an in-office consultation.
Gregory P. Lee
www.gregleelaw.com
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