After six months of litigation and three days of trial, Attorney Cadora was successful in returning a young daughter to her father. The mother had removed the child from San Diego County after falsely accusing father of domestic violence and substance abuse that Attorney Cadora easily refuted at trial. Fair Cadora’s relentless search for the truth and justice resulted in a very favorable outcome for the client and his daughter.
Child move-away cases are extremely complicated, time consuming and expensive because the parties are entitled to a full hearing on the matter and a full custody evaluation. Factors the court considers include the nature of the custodial arrangement, the relationship between the parties, the relationship between the child and each parent, the distance of the move and the age and preference of the child. The court is also charged with determining whether to apply a best interest standard to the case or whether to apply the change in circumstances test based upon whether the matter was brought post judgment AND the parties do not share joint physical custody. All of the factors must be analyzed prior to taking any move-away matter to trial.
In this case, the mother moved the child to Orange County without a court order or consent of the father, which is required before a parent may move a child out of the county from which the custody order arose. The mother’s credibility was weakened by the fact that Father’s drug assessment came back negative and mother had no credible evidence of father’s alleged drug problem. However, the court was most concerned about mother moving the child without a court order or consent, which was the factor the court considered most important and was the basis for which the child was returned to her father in San Diego.
Congratulations to Attorney Cadora for a fantastic win and congratulations to the client and the reuniting with his daughter! To learn more about child custody and move away cases, contact Fair Cadora to schedule your free consultation.
