Legal Question in Family Law in Tennessee

Re: Child Custody Out of the Country

You are facing perhaps the most complicated issue in all of domestic relations law. Interstate child custody battles are a nightmare, so you can imagine what international custody battles are like. Please take all measures necessary to avoid their leaving unless both parents are in agreement, especially if you have any reason to believe the purpose is to stay in the other country with them. Still, even with court orders etc. bad people can do bad things, so contact counsel immediately and discuss this.

Re: Child Custody Out of the Country

You will need to get an order from the court that issued custody and visitation orders to hold a hearing on whether your ex spouse should be allowed to leave the country with your children. The court might enjoin her from leaving, but you would have to get her to surrender the children's passports and have a way to alert the airlines if she tries to depart. Of course, she could drive to Canada or Mexico.

Once a spouse is out of the country with children, it becomes 10 times more difficult to get the children back. The United States has signed treaties with various countries on respect for custody, but those treaties are routinely broken -- as featured on a 60 Minutes show about two or three years ago.

Another attorney may have some other good ideas for you.