Speelman

Petitioner Petitioner is a Massachusetts father who had custody of his six-year-old son during the 1982-1983 school year and expected that arrangement to continue during 1983-1984. However, during the boy’s summer in California, his mother obtained a change of custody, reversing the roles established by the marriage settlement agreement so that the boy now spends the school year with her. The court made this change based upon the “best interests of the child,” but ignored the requirement that a change of circumstances be demonstrated before a change of custody is ordered, contrary to the dictates of In re Marriage of Carney (1979) 24 Cal.3d 725, 730-731 [ 157 Cal.Rptr. 383 , 598 P.2d 36 , 3 A.L.R. 4th 1028 ]. We annul the trial court’s order.

Mathew was born to Steven and Janet Speelman on February 15, 1977. The couple separated in California in 1980, and their marriage was terminated by a California final judgment of dissolution in 1981. In their marriage settlement agreement, the parties established equal physical custody through the summer of 1982, but provided that thereafter Steven, who had been transferred to the Boston area, would have primary physical custody…