What are the Ohio Laws Concerning Moving Out of State With Children?
- Ohio Revised Code has specific guidelines for moving out of state with children.moving image by dinostock from Fotolia.com
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention makes the National Vital Statistics System (NVSS) available to the general public for research. In 2007, the NVSS reported over 850,000 divorces. While not every divorce involved children, the ones that did were subject to family laws instituted by the state issuing the final decree. The courts govern custody, child support and visitation. The state of Ohio passed a provision for moving with dependent children involved in a child custody case. - Divorce and dissolution paperwork makes stipulations for any minor children which resulted from the marriage. Many times, the parents have worked out the custody and visitation arrangements prior to going to court for the divorce. In Ohio, parents receive shared parenting of the minor children. Before issuing the shared parenting decree, the court considers the best interest of the children, the geographic location of the parents and any records of conviction of either parent. The residence of the children is recorded with the court at the time of the decree. The court must be notified of any changes in the address of the residence.
- When the custodial parent intends to move out of the jurisdiction of the court--either out of state or out of the county--the custodial parent must file a notice of intent to relocate with the court. The court will notify the non-custodial parent of the move unless certain circumstances show that notification is not in the best interest of the children. Circumstances such as a record of abuse, violence or a lack of interest in the welfare of the children can prevent the court from notifying the non-custodial parent of the move.
- The non-custodial parent has the right to file a motion and request a hearing to stop the out-of-state move. The court will schedule the hearing to determine if the move is in the best interest of the child. If the custodial parent is moving simply for a change of scenery, the courts will most likely deny the move. However, if the custodial parent must move because of work or other reasonable situation, the court may grant the move. The court looks at the children's involvement with their school and community, the relationship of the children to other family members, the non-custodial parent's involvement with the children and the status of child support payments. The court may also request a closed session with the children to determine how they feel about the move.
