Legal Question in Family Law in Virginia
Will Soldier Lose Custody?
My husband and I have been married 5 yrs. He has had primary custody of his son (13 yrs old) since he was 2 or 3 with ex having visitation 3 times a year. He will be deploying to Iraq for a year. Will ex get custody while he is gone (perhaps permanant) even though he and I have ''raised'' him the last 5 years? This is also my husbands 2nd deployment, although the last one was only 4 months long. Our son stayed with me and the other siblings during that time. We didn't tell the ex the last time and she didn't find out till about 3 weeks before he came home, because she doesn't ever call. Is there a way to show he is in a stable, familiar environment with us? Honestly, my husband works many hours a day, so even though he is ''here'', like a lot of moms, I'm the one with the children all day anyways. Can the courts move our son, just because my husband will be overseas? My husband loves his son and there is a reason he got custody in the first place.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Will Soldier Lose Custody?
First of all the boy's mother would need to file papers with the appropriate court to petition for any change in the current custody arrangements, and, furthermore, if she did so, she would also have the burden of proving to the court by a preponderance of the evidence that there had been one or more material changes in the life of the boy and his custodial parents which would justify a change in the current arrangements and which would be in the child's best interests.
Absent such a showing, it's unlikely that there would be any change in the current custody order, and your husband's deployment to Iraq is unlikely to be found to constitute such a material change as long as your are in a position to act as a custodial parent to the boy.
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