Assessment criteria in relocation cases: An exploratory study of Spanish family court Judges

Abstract

This descriptive study determined whether Spanish family law judges (N = 30) use the criteria proposed in the scientific literature and jurisprudence to assess cases of the relocation of minors after the breakdown of their parents’ relationship. Our results showed that the judges consider the criteria to be relevant in guiding their decision-making process, the most valued criteria being the psychological ones (parents’ psychological adjustment; relationship between the minor and each parent; the right of the child to maintain personal relationships with both parents). However, we observed trends in the judicial resolutions, with a third of the judges tending to authorize relocation requests and another third tending to deny them, indicating the presence of biases or presumptions.

Keywords:

• Relocation
• child custody
• evaluation criteria
• judges