Legal Question in Family Law in Texas

Mother will not consent to passport for international travel.

I am wanting to take my children to visit Brazil for a few weeks next summer to visit their step-grandparents, cousins, etc... For 2 years now my children's mother(who is the managing conservator) has refused to let them go and therefore not consented to sign the passport or visa papers. I found a case from 2000 in Missouri where the courts forced a mother in a similar situation to sign the consent forms since they found no reason for her not to. There is nothing in my divorce decree saying that I cannot take my children on an international vacation. I am considering similar action if this continues year after year. Is anyone familiar with other cases like this, and whether this is a reasonable route to take in Texas courts?

Thanks


Asked on 11/15/04, 2:41 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Betsy Lambeth Betsy F. Lambeth

Re: Mother will not consent to passport for international travel.

It sounds like you will have to file a legal proceeding to force her to let you take the children. Of course the outcome, depends on the jurisdiction you are in and how that particular judge feels about this type thing. In my jursidcition I believe that the judge would force her to sign the passport as long as there were no allegations of you ever having kept the kids from her. Whether or not YOU have clean hands and how you have conducted yourself as their father, ie. returning the children on time, being at their activities, paying child support on time, will affect the judge's view of the situation. If you have been a great dad and she has been difficult, I believe you would have a good chance of getting an order from the judge. But, these type things vary from court to court.

Best of luck.

Betsy F. Lambeth

Attorney at Law

[email protected]

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Answered on 11/17/04, 5:17 pm


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