I recently heard of a woman who is moving from New Jersey to Connecticut to get remarried. She has two young boys (ages 6 and 8). Her ex-husband, who works in NYC, will be moving as well. Yes, you read that correctly, the ex is moving with her out of NJ so she can move. You may be wondering how you can relocate, possibly out of NJ, when you share custody.
After your divorce you may want to move for many reasons…new job, new life, new family. But if you have children of your own you can not just decide to move, especially across state lines – and possibly outside of a predetermined radius – without your ex ok’ing it and possibly relocating themselves.
When faced with this situation, it is best to discuss your options with a NJ divorce attorney. This falls under my purvue as a Family Law attorney here in East Brunswick, NJ. When I help my clients through these types of transitions it is critical to get both sides to agree and make all necessary plans. We may also want to officially process a new agreement through the court. Why? Well, some child custody agreements specifically state that both parents may reside within a specific radius of where ever they were living when married. You would not want to move, and then have a problem.
Now, you may be wondering what the benefits are to the ex-husband? Well, once his ex-wife is married he no longer has to pay her alimony. And, he knows all too well that going out of his way will not only forever ease tension between them but is in the best interest of his children. In this case he looked at the entire situation and realized his commute to work would be about the same and he will actually be a bit closer to family.
It takes a very special type of person to move so their ex-spouse can be happier. For the sake of the children it is really important to put differences and bitterness aside and move forward with a friendly relationship. When I help my clients through their divorce we stress peace and fairness.
