A NEW HEARING ON FATHER’S PETITION TO RELOCATE IS REQUIRED BECAUSE THE COURT MAY HAVE PLACED TOO MUCH EMPHASIS ON THE CHILD’S ENROLLMENT IN A PARTICULAR SCHOOL AS THE BASIS FOR GRANTING THE PETITION (THIRD DEPT). ​

The Third Department, reversing Family Court, determined a new hearing on father’s relocation petition was required because the court may have put too much emphasis on the child’s enrollment in a particular school:

Family Court determined that it was in the best interests of the child to award the father physical custody of the child and to permit the child to relocate to New York City. In making this determination, we note that the court took into account the child’s relationship with the family members in each parties’ household, the child’s current school and Promise Academy, the parties’ relative fitness to provide a safe and healthy environment and the structure in each household to support the child’s educational needs. The court, however, conditioned such change of custody and relocation upon the child’s enrollment in Promise Academy for the 2017-2018 school year. In our view, by imposing such condition, the court erroneously elevated the child’s matriculation at Promise Academy from one factor to be considered in the best interests analysis to the sole dispositive factor. Inasmuch as no one factor is dispositive … , the order must be reversed and a new hearing to be conducted on the father’s modification petition within 20 days of this Court’s decision. Matter of Lionel PP. v Sherry QQ., 2019 NY Slip Op 02398, Third Dept 2-28-19