Forde v. Sommers

This is a petition to modify a Massachusetts child custody decree. The parties were married in 1961 and had four children whose ages now range between seven and fifteen. In May 1972, a Massachusetts court ordered a legal separation of the parties and awarded custody of the children to the defendant mother. In May 1973, that court granted her a divorce and ordered the plaintiff to pay $80 a week for child support.

In March 1973, two months prior to the divorce, the defendant and her children moved to Texas, where she secured employment for $75 a week. Because of this limited income and the…