That’s a question that is very complex, though it sounds simple. The quick and dirty answer to “can a family court judge order a parent to move their children [from one school to another]?” is YES.

But it seems to me that your question is not really whether or not the judge has the authority to order it, but was it the correct thing to do. And the answer to that deeper question is the tough part. The answer is I have no idea if it was the correct thing to do under the circumstances.

A family court judge is charged with making rulings “in the best interests of the child” above all else. That means the judge does not care about one parent’s choice of schools versus the other parent’s choice of schools. There are many things to consider in such a decision, and many of the considerations go far beyond the rating of the school district.

A judge, making such a decision, will typically consider things like the child’s history with a given school; the grades attained by the child; the child’s aptitudes and special needs; the age of the child; possibly (if the child is older) whether the child wishes to change school or not; has there been some sort of manipulation by one parent or the other; was the school changed against the wishes of one of the parents to begin with; was there an agreement as to where the child would attend school; has the child’s residence moved requiring a change in school.

As you can see, the considerations are nearly limitless and will vary with the situation, but the answer is YES, a family court judge can order a person to change the child’s school (in the right circumstances).

If you don’t mind a quick question, can a family court judge order a parent to move their children from their new, current okay school district back to their old, below average school district (in which the other parent still lives)– let’s say for 12 years? The children have no special needs being addressed at the old district, but the old district offers “advanced” classes and the new doesn’t… though it’s a lesser district.\

Thanks for your time.

So you have my respect for going doing something that I am simply not brave enough to do.

Rock on.

Please realize that I cannot give you legal advice as I am not your attorney. I can, however, point you to the NY Unified Court website http://www.courts.state.ny.us/ip/matrimonial-matters/forms.shtml which is loaded with forms, you might want to look at the financial affidavit.

In these hard economic times, I can certainly understand the urge to try and take care of matters yourself, but realize that a qualified attorney is almost always preferable. If you make mistakes now, they could be costly, or even impossible to remedy at a later date.

When it comes to Child Support, alimony and things of that nature, you really should consult an attorney. My posts here are geared toward the general public and there is a lot more to it than just calculating the base support amount. In fact, there is no statutory formula for alimony in New York.

Good luckand I hope this was useful to you!
Chuck