Mothers and fathers both have the right to have parenting time with their children. All things being equal, and if both parents are fully capable of caring for their children, there is no reason why both parents cannot spend time with their child ,even if the parents have never been married and are not living together.
When there is no court order in place fixing legal custody and parenting time with the child, both parents have equal rights to have access to their children. In New York, when a non-custodial parent is prevented from seeing the children, he has the right to file a petition seeking court ordered visitation with their child.
Once an order from a Court fixes custody and visitation, any attempt by a parent to prevent the court ordered visitation can be a violation of that court order. The noncustodial parent has the right to return to the Family Court and ask a judge to enforce an existing order fixing parenting time and custody.
Child Abduction and Relocation
The worst form of interference with custody and visitation is when a parent abducts the children and relocates without permission from the Court and without consent of the non-custodial parent. Relocating with the children can severely impact on the non-custodial parent’s visitation with their children.
Custodial parents who wish to move far away from the non-custodial parent must petition the family court for an Order which allows them to relocate. The custodial parent who wishes to relocate has the burden to show that relocating with the children is in the children’s best interest, and not just in the interest of the relocating parent.
Parents who abscond with their children and frustrate the non-custodial parent’s court ordered visitation are clearly in contempt of a court order and are subject to severe sanctions.
Mindy McCready Abduct her Child
Recently, the matter of the famous singer Mindy McCready having allegedly abducted her own child from the child’s legal guardian has received extensive news coverage. Though not involving interference with custody by a non-custodial parent, the interference of court ordered custody can still be a criminal offense.
Aggressive Fathers’ Rights Lawyers
The Law Offices of Schlissel DeCorpo have more than 45 years experience aggressively fighting for the rights of the fathers we represent. We deal with relocation problems, interstate abductions, international relocations and all other cases where the custodial parent seeks to move the child away from the locality where the father lives.
In addition, our law firm represents fathers with regard to domestic violence cases in both the Criminal and Family Courts, orders of protection, allegations of child abuse and child neglect, as well as paternity issues and divorces. We also represent grandparents in grandparents’ rights cases. Call for a free consultation at 1-800-344-6431, 516-561-6645 or 718-350-2802.
