New circumstance since mediation - court date June 23 - please help

[socrateaser]

Questions for you:

1. Was your original custody order stipulated?

2. Is there anything specified in your custody order regarding relocating the child or enrolling him in a different school?

3. Is one of you designated "primary custodian" or the like, or is this an completely equal split?

4.  Differentiate between the market theories of "fundamental value" and "liquidity." (just kidding!) ;->

[rebecca]

Unfortunately, our custody arrangement does not include anything regarding school, or changing schools.  Son was a toddler when we divorced and I didn't think that far ahead.

The agreement does say that we have to give the other parent 6 months notice if we move outside of the county.  Son's father did not move outside of the county, he just moved to another city within the same county.

We each have joint legal/physical custody with no one designated as a primary custodian.  Our time with Son is split down the middle to the minute.  Except for the right of first refusal where Son's father picked him up from school all of this school year.

Thank you.

[socrateaser]

May it please the court, your honor, on ??/??/??, Mr. X, unilaterally, and without prior notice, enrolled our son, Y, in a different school, after Mr. X relocated, also without prior notice, to the city of Z.

Although our current custody orders and parenting plans, do not expressly cover either of these circumstances, I believe that Mr. X's actions violate the general principle of joint custody, as well as the equal parenting arrangement expressed in our parenting plan, which requires the close cooperation of both parents, especially with regard to making major decisions concerning our child's education.

I ask that the court order that the status quo be maintained, and our son ordered enrolled at Z_SCHOOL, which is the school that he has been attending up until now, unless Mr. X can show that this new school  provides some substantial benefit over Y's current school.

Finally, I believe it important to mention, that by moving the child, Mr. X creates a significant increase in the amount of transportation that I will be responsible for, and if the court finds that this change of school is in the child's best interests, that Mr. X should be ordered to compensate me for the reasonable cost of this additional transportation, as he is the person who relocated.

Thank you.

[rebecca]

Thank you so much!