Family Law: What next? Advice needed please

[MsBakingCakes]

DD and I are flying to visit my family this month. ExP is aware as before I bought the tickes I had to email him flights details for him to give me authorisation to buy the tickets (not sure this is correct or within his PR but that is another matter). He gave me his consent and I bought tickets back in March. He said then that he would give me writing consent. Our flight does not affect his visiting arrangements as I have bought the flight when DD was not seeing him.

5 weeks ago I received a letter from his new solicitors (third solicitors in 1 year ). I replied to his solicitors with all the information they were requesting includin proof of flights and asked them to let their client know that I needed written consent offically witness from his client a fourthnight before our departure date. I have not receved any written consent as yet and I am wondering what is next left for us. I believe that I could go to court and ask for something to be able to go to visit my family but I am not sure what it is. We will be flying in 3 weeks time and I would like to have that letter with us before we fly as I don't want to find ourselves in a situation where in passport control we are told that we cannot fly as ExP has not given us written consent

Could anyone help me please? I am also considering to apply for a residence order as this would mean that I could take DD abroad for up to a month without his consent. Not sure what I have to do either in order to do this or how it may affect us. We live 5 hours away and we have reached an agreement on visiting times and we are already using them since last November. ExP sees DD every 8 weeks for a minimum of 1 week sometimes more. So some advice in this matter much appreciated too.

Thanks in advance

Assuming you like in England and Wales, if I were you I'd be applying for a specific issue order, to allow you to remove DD from the country for up to 28 days at a time without his consent. Apply on an urgent basis.

Agree with Collaborate. Might also be worth thinking about a Residence Order

Thanks to both of you. We are in England. How do I apply for a specific issue order? I don't have a solicitor anymore as we finished all the process of separating in at the end of February.

Also I would like to know what I should do to apply for a residence order. Do I need a solicitor or can I do it alone? Do I have more chancesof getting it if I have a solicitor? What does usually happens when you apply for a residence order?

Thanks again. As usual very helpful

You can download the form (C1 or C2 depending on whether there are other proceedings) from the court service website. You just say on there that you're applying for a SIO, and if necessary, RO. The fee is, iirc £210, but the court will confirm. They'll set the application down for an interim hearing. Loads of leaflets and other info are available on the court service website.

My own feeling is that the SIO should be granted quite quickly in the circs, but an application for a RO may actually slow everything down, depending on the local practice of your court, so I;d be inclined to crack on with the SIO now, and ask the court to expedite the proceedings. Worry about the RO if necessary later on.

Having said that, if you do get an RO in the future, you can take your dd out of the country for up to 28 days so you don't have to go through this malarky all over again next time. Courts don't like making residence orders where there's no real argument, though. Google "presumption of no order"

The forms are now available from the Ministry of Justice website. If it's a new application you use Form C100 and as Collaborate said you will need to request an urgent hearing. There are also guides CB1 & CB3 and a list of court fees (EX50). The fee is £200.

There is also a book available from Amazon called Family Courts Without a Lawyer by Lucy Reed which you might find useful.

Thank you very much for everthing. I cannot afford at the moment to pay the fees of a solicitior and I am not sure if I would be entittle to legal aid as the rules change last September I think. I di get it throughout my separation but I was very dissapointed with my solicitor. Some of you at the time already mention to me that some of the things she was saying were not correct or accurate.

Thanks for all the info. I will get on with SIO on Monday. Thanks again, always helpful

Apply for both SIO and residence. the court can grant you an SIO to cover the holiday, and a more permanent arrangement will be secured by the RO. It costs you no more.