questions & answers

Question: If I have sole custody of my son (age3) and my ex (who is not biologically related to my son) has visitation rights under loco parentis, do I need to have his permission to let my son visit his grandparents out of state? And how long can my son be out of sate to visit his grandparents?

Answer: Sole custody should allow you to take your child out of state to visit grandparents.  However, if your ex has court ordered visitation, you cannot substantially interfere with those rights.  Your best option is for you and your ex to agree on a modified visitation schedule that allows him time with the child while also allowing the child to visit grandparents.  You have not specified what amount of visitation your ex has.  Keeping the peace may involve limiting the out of state visit to several weeks and offering your ex more time for a period when the child returns.  If that is not satisfactory, he can go back to court.  That is his option.  You, having sole custody, are in a strong position for making  vacation plans.