Short bit of help..Japanese

[yukionna]

I'm a single mom, divorced from a Japanese man recently. I've been keeping in contact with his mother about her granddaughter here in America and have been relying on Google Translate for both writing and reading our correspondences. It's not perfect, and I'm sure it makes a lot of mistakes but, well beggars can't be choosers. But today there was

Comments

[japankasasagi]

Hi! I can only say that it says that whoever wrote the sentence is saying that they were talking to Allison about Kenichi, and made her feel lonely, and for that they are sorry.

And I don't want to be an alarmist yet, but DO NOT SIGN ANYTHING without getting them properly translated. You could be signing over full custody to your ex without knowing about it. As far as I can recall, Japan is still not a signatory to the International Child Abdction treaty, so if he takes the kids to Japan, by Japanese law he WILL have full custody. Or, if you've signed over custody, and go to Japan and they seize your child, same problem. And Japanese is full, 100% custody of ONE parent only, there is no shared custody period.

I don't know where you are located, but for legal documents, it won't be cheap. Not thousands, but probably several hundred at least, since they are legal documents and the language is specialized. If you're in a major city, check locally for translators. Or, if there's a university with a Japanese professor, they might possibly do translation on the side. If that doesn't work out, check online, starting with the nearest major city. Once you get them translated, you will be better prepared to decide what actions to take, but definitely do NOT sign them without knowing what they state.

I'm sory I can't be more help, but your MIL is simply apologizing for making allison feel bad, that's all. But definitely take care with those legal documents!

[yukionna]

Thanks for the reply. I wasn't sure if the grandmother was feeling lonely or my ex...and I also wasn't sure what the apology was about :s

But as for custody...while I'm still going to get the papers translated, I think we're safe as far as Japan granting him custody. I did a LOT of research when I was pregnant with her because I also was aware they had not signed the treaty. Apparently, since we were not married at the time of her birth, she is not a recognized Japanese citizen. I guess children only get the citizenship automatically if the mother is Japanese. He would have to legally adopt her through the Japanese system to even get her on his koseki (which she is not). I live near Portland, Oregon, which has a pretty decent Japanese presence. So maybe I could find someone local as you suggested. I hadn't thought of that. Thanks for the help and the advice :)