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For some years there have been mumblings in judicial quarters about the current case law surrounding how a Court approaches the issue of a parent who wishes to leave England and Wales and relocate elsewhere. The current leading case of Payne v Payne is over 9 years old and is seen to lend undue weight in favour of the parent seeking permission to leave.
Lord Justice Wall has now lent his weight to a review of the existing caselaw by granting leave to appeal an order which would allow a parent to remove their child from the jurisdiction.
He commented that:
"There has been considerable criticism of Payne v Payne in certain quarters, and there is a perfectly respectable argument for the proposition that it places too great an emphasis on the wishes and feelings of the relocating parent, and ignores or relegates the harm done to children by a permanent breach of the relationship which the children have with the parent left behind."
This may come as scant comfort to the parents who have "lived" with the effect of Payne v Payne for a number of years but it seems the law is moving a further step forward. This is not to say that any challenge to remove a child will be unsuccessful at present. There are a number of cases where permission has been refused to leave the jurisdiction under the existing law.
If you are considering moving abroad with your child or wish to seek advice when your former partner is seeking move, please contact us so that we can help consider your options further.
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