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I have been divorced for 5 years now. My ex-wife has met another chap, and is in the process of moving some 30 miles away. There is a court order in place and I continue to pay all that I am bound to. My query is that the two children (16 and 14) have said they want to live with me. The court order assumed I would have the boys stay with me for 1 night/week. It is likely they will be staying with me for 5 or 6 nights/week. Can anybody give me some advice on what my rights are, and if/ how I can change the terms of the court order based on these circumstances? Many thanks for any information.
Hi there
At the ages of 16 and 14 their wishes will carry a lot of weight. The 16 year old can now decide where and with whom he wants to live with and the 14 year old will be listened to.
Courts are loathe to split siblings up and also they are at an important time educationally and moving to a new school and leaving friends and family behind will all go favourably for you and the children.
You would have to go to court to vary the order and you will need to show that you have tried to resolve this by attending mediation as this is now compulsory before court action. Here's a link to the mediation service
www.nfm.org.uk
Some mediators offer a child inclusive service and I think your children are old enough to take part in mediation so this might be a good idea.
May be a silly question, but might your ex agree to this anyway without any need for mediation etc?
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