Mother denying visitation moved 2 states away

[LiL Mike]

I live in Wayne County North Carolina and have an 15 month old son. Paternity has been proven and I am paying child support and carrying him on health and dental insurance as required by the court order. However, I have tried repeatedly to see him and handle things civilly with his mother without having to go to court. I have exhausted all resources and do not have the money to hire a lawyer just for a consultation. She is not cooperative and refuses to get in contact or allow me to see him. Need to know what papers I can file myself and where to find them to achieve visitation. Also, I heard that if she and the child are living in the other state for 6 months, we then have to file things through that court system and their laws; is this true? If so, what are my options? Please someone help me.

[mistoffolees]

>I live in Wayne County North Carolina and have an 15 month
>old son. Paternity has been proven and I am paying child
>support and carrying him on health and dental insurance as
>required by the court order. However, I have tried repeatedly
>to see him and handle things civilly with his mother without
>having to go to court. I have exhausted all resources and do
>not have the money to hire a lawyer just for a consultation.
>She is not cooperative and refuses to get in contact or allow
>me to see him. Need to know what papers I can file myself and
>where to find them to achieve visitation. Also, I heard that
>if she and the child are living in the other state for 6
>months, we then have to file things through that court system
>and their laws; is this true? If so, what are my options?
>Please someone help me.


What does your parenting plan / custody order say about visitation? If she is not providing visitation per the order, then you would file charging her with contempt of court. Your court clerk can help. However, make sure you have evidence. For example, show up at the scheduled time to pick up your son with someone else along so they can testify that she did not allow you visitation. Or record your phone conversation (if it's legal in your state) to show her refusing to allow visitation. Just make sure you have hard evidence. 'He said - She said' won't work.

Do it soon. The longer you go without visitation, the easier it is for her to argue that the child doesn't know you (not fair, but it happens).

As for her move, you don't need to file anything. Your current court order remains in effect until the child turns 18 (sometimes longer) unless someone moves to change it. If no one asks a court to change it, then it stays in effect.

Either one of you can ask the CURRENT court to change it at any time, although you have to provide reasonable grounds for a change.

Either one of you can file for a change in the NEW location after the child has resided there for 6 months.  If she does that, you're going to have to go to the other state (or hire an attorney) if you want to keep any visitation rights at all.

[Kitty C.]

Maybe I'm wrong, but it sounds like all the OP has is a paternity action and support order in effect, but no custody/visitation order.  And believe it or not, you can have separate orders in separate states, because we had that.  So if no custody/visitation order has been established, the OP needs to beg, borrow, or steal to get the money to pay for an atty., and he needs to do it soon.  Because if the BM moves soon, he's go up to 6 months to file for it, or the new state will have jurisdiction if the BM moves there, lives there for 6 months, and files for custody.