Primary custodial parent moving out of state

North Carolina Divorce Law Divorce and Separation Answers
1

My wife’s ex husband has primary joint custody of their 11 (soon to be 12) year old daughter. We’re about to begin summer visitation from July 1st thru August 10th and the ex husband informed my wife today that he is moving to Autin, TX and will be taking the daughter with him once summer visitation is over. My wife has been granted every other weekend visitation that the ex has ignored a few times throughout the year. So we have a few things to ask here

  1. What, if any, laws has the ex husband broken by not stating his intentions to move out of state? He knew he had intentions by interviewing for a job but didn’t say anything until after he was offered a job.
  2. What kind of notice is the ex husband required to give when accepting a new job out of state?
  3. Is there anything legally that my wife can do to prevent her daughter from moving to a new state?
  4. Does a new visitation schedule need to be drawn up should the move take place?

We realize that we need will need a lawyer in this situation. We also know that the ex husband has delayed the timing of this information deliberately in order to prevent us or delay us from legal action. We understand that the burden of proof is upon us now but could use some advice on the questions above.

Thanks

2

A lot of the answers to the questions depend on a reading of the agreement or court order that defines child custody including the schedule and the legal decision making. If there is no order in place, you could look at filing an emergency custody motion based on him fleeing the jurisdiction or a temporary restraining order to get him to not move based on not being able to exercise visitation. Either way, you need to seek the advice of an attorney in your area immediately.