Section YAE.08.14 — Moving A Child's Residence

(a) Notice to Other Parent.

(1) If periods of physical placement have been ordered for more than one parent, then the parent shall provide not less than sixty (60) days written notice to the other parent, with a copy to the Court, of his or her intent to:

(A) Establish his or her legal residence with the child at any location outside the State of Wisconsin.

(B) Establish his or her legal residence with the child at any location within the State of Wisconsin that is at a distance of One Hundred and Fifty (150) miles or more from the other parent.

(2) The parent proposing the move shall provide notice of the proposed action to the other parent. The notice shall state the parent's proposed action, including the specific date and location of the move or specific beginning and ending dates and location of the removal, and that the other parent may object within thirty (30) days.

(A) Such notice shall normally be delivered by certified mail.

(B) If the parent is unable to obtain delivery by certified mail, the parent may provide an affidavit to the Court setting out his or her efforts to have the notice delivered.

(C) When a parent's address is protected for purposes of privacy or safety, then the parent proposing the move shall petition the Court clerk to forward the required notice to the other parent. The Court clerk shall also forward any objection received by the other parent.

(b) The Court may approve a move or removal without notification to the other parent where the move or removal is in the best interest of the child and one or more of the following applies:

(1) the other parent submits an affidavit consenting to the move or removal;

(2) the parent proposing the move or removal submits an affidavit stating that the other parent, without undue interference from the parent proposing the move or removal or his or her family, has not exercised his or her rights to periods of physical placement or maintained regular contact with the child in three years and the parent proposing the move or removal provides documentation from a child support agency that the other parent is behind the equivalent of at least one year in child support, for that child;

(3) the other parent is incarcerated or otherwise institutionalized; or

(4) the other parent lives out of state.

(1) Within thirty (30) days after receiving the notice, a parent who objects to the move or removal shall send to the parent proposing the move or removal and file with the Court, a written notice of objection to the proposed action. Such notice shall be sent by first-class mail to the address provided in the initial notice or to the Court clerk when the address is not available due to privacy or security concerns.

(2) If the Court receives a notice of objection, it shall be deemed to constitute a motion to review. The parent proposing the move or removal may not move with or remove the child pending resolution of the dispute, or final order of the Court, unless the parent petitions for and obtains a temporary order to do so.

(3) The Court shall hold a hearing on the dispute within twenty (20) days. The burden of proof is on the parent proposing the move or removal.

(4) Standards for Modification if the Move or Removal is Contested.

(A) The Court may allow the move or removal and modify the legal custody or physical placement order as necessary if the Court finds all of the following:

(i) The modification is in the best interest of the child.

(ii) The move or removal will result in a substantial change of circumstances since the entry of the last order affecting legal custody or the last order substantially affecting physical placement.

(B) With respect to subsection (A) above, there is a rebuttable presumption that continuing the current allocation of decision making under a legal custody order or continuing the child's physical placement with the parent with whom the child resides for the greater period of time, if applicable, is in the best interest of the child. This presumption may be overcome by:

(i) the parent objecting to the move or removal by a showing that the move or removal is unreasonable and not in the best interest of the child; or

(ii) the parent proposing the move or removal by a showing that the move or removal is reasonable and in the best interest of the child.

(C) A change in the economic circumstances or marital status of either party is not sufficient to meet the standards for modification under that section.

(5) The Court may prohibit the move or removal if the Court finds that the prohibition is in the best interest of the child.

(6) Factors in the Court's Determination. In making its determination, the Court shall consider all of the following factors:

(A) Whether the purpose of the proposed action is reasonable.

(B) Whether the proposed action will unduly affect the child's ties to his or her tribal community and culture.

(C) The nature and extent of the child's relationship with the other parent and the disruption to that relationship which the proposed action may cause.

(D) The availability of alternative arrangements to foster and continue the child's relationship with and access to the other parent.

(E) The child's adjustment to the home, school, religion and community.

(d) Notice for other Moves or Removals. Unless the parents agree otherwise, a parent with legal custody and physical placement rights shall notify the other parent before removing the child from his or her primary residence for at least fourteen (14) consecutive days, but not more than ninety (90) consecutive days.