Writ of Ne Exeat
Sometimes, I feel like an old-time lawyer.
I filed a Petition for a Writ of Ne Exeat last week. I was trying to stop the mother from taking a child out of the country before the court could hear a Motion to Modify Custody.
The judge and opposing counsel had never heard of a Writ of Ne Exeat. It is from the common law and was a way for the court to stop somebody from leaving the jurisdiction of the court before the court could decide something. It usually was invoked when trying to collect a debt to keep the debtor from absconding.
The Maryland Constitution gives the residents of Maryland all the rights of common law including the right to petition for a Writ of Ne Exeat. However, as opposing counsel correctly noted, the court said in Jackson v. Jackson, that the writ should not be granted lightly because it restricts a person’s constitutional right to travel freely. And it should only be applied in cases of child support and alimony.
I do not agree that the writ should be limited only to cases of child support and alimony, but there is some support for this proposition in the Maryland rules. Old Rule 72d actually provided for a Writ of Ne Exeat, provide it was supported by a proper affidavit, for cases involving alimony and child support. Rule 72 has now been incorporated into new Rule 9-201 through 9-203 which is all about financial statements in alimony and child support cases.
But the new rule omits any mention of a Writ of Ne Exeat!
The judge granted my petition, and ordered the mother not to remove the child from the jurisdiction until further order of the court. However the judge’s order starts like this, “The court having considered Plaintiff’s petition in the nature of a request for an injunction”.
So I guess I will put my Writ of Ne Exeat in the archive of old-time lawyering and next time ask for an injunction like the new young modern lawyers do. It just doesn’t sound as good though.
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August 20th, 2008 at 1:21 am
does the Writ of Ne Exeat apply to women that are still pregnant with a child, and the woman has good reason to leave, ie other children that reside out of state, and or family that also reside out of state. also is this writ allowable for someone who has relocated for the purpose of school.
My situation: I have 3 children in which my parents have custody of in NC, and I am pregnant and the “alleged father”, no paternity test at this time and we are not married, threatened to sue me with this writ. In addition I had previously enrolled in school and am in a visitation/custody battle of my own with those children.
April 24th, 2011 at 2:35 pm
I had filed one in 2010 too.