Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

relocating without a custody order

i am not married and have a 7 year old daughter. her dad is on the birth certificate and tells me that i am not allowed to move without his permission. previously i've had an anti harrassment order against him but it's expired and now he uses our daughter as a tool to find out what i'm doing and says that since she lives with me full time that it directly effects her therefore he should know what i'm doing. i'm worried that he's going to cause real harm to our daughter mentally as i feel it is a form of harassment to her also.

i think that it would be a wise choice to get her away from him. i am planning to move to another state to better our lives and to get away from him and need to know if there is something that he can do legally to stop me from moving and if there is if i have a shot of being able to relocate with the problems stated.


Asked on 6/10/08, 12:14 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Christopher Steuart IT Forensics, Inc.

Re: relocating without a custody order

There are several pieces of information that would be useful in answering your question: Has there been a paternity action? Is there a residential schedule and order of support? I am going to guess there has not, and without a court order you are free to act. For six months after you leave the state he could file an action to establish a parenting plan and support order in Washington. You could also immediately file the action in Washington and ask for temporary orders, and file a notice of relocation. In general the courts are supportive of residential parents relocation if there is a legitimate reason.

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Answered on 6/11/08, 12:50 am


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