Relocation Issues

Because of the high mobility of its population, family law courts in the authors' home state of Florida face questions involving relocation on a regular basis. While these cases are numerous, they are hardly routine. Each such case pits the residential parent's desire to establish a new career, or to follow a new spouse, or to live near relatives, against the child's need to maintain a close relationship with the other parent.

To assist the courts with this difficult and highly contentious issue, in 2006, the Florida legislature redefined the standards by which a divorced parent may relocate with a minor child by amending Florida Statute ' 61.13 to create Florida Statute
' 61.13001. Section 61.13001 restricts the primary residential parent's ability to relocate more than 50 miles away from his/her current primary residence without either an agreement between the parties or leave of court. As we approach the one-year anniversary of the enactment of ' 61.13001, the ardent family law practitioner should recognize that the ratification of this statute, and other similar statutes nationally, provides a blue print for structuring Final Judgments and Marital Settlement Agreements so as to help avoid litigating the issue of relocation in a post-dissolution action, or failing that, to navigate relocation litigation successfully.