Parents who live apart must make arrangements for their children, including deciding where the children will live and who will make decisions for them.
Deciding legal and physical custody in Saratoga Springs is highly emotional and triggering for many parents. Working with a skilled child custody attorney can smooth the process and help you make the best decision for your children.
Parents in Saratoga Springs encounter various legal terms when engaged in negotiations or a court dispute over legal and physical custody of their child(ren). It is critical for them to have a clear understanding of the language typically used in child custody matters.
Legal custody is the right to make major life decisions on the child(ren)’s behalf, such as where they attend school, consenting to healthcare, and determining their religious practices. Parents can share legal custody on all issues, one parent might have sole legal custody, or the parents could each have issues they decide alone. One parent might handle healthcare and the other education, for example.
When one parent is granted sole legal custody, the other retains the right to access the child(ren)’s health and educational records. A parent who wants to limit the other parent’s access to this information should speak with an attorney. A parent with sole legal custody may need to consult the other parent about major decisions, but the decision is theirs to make.
Physical custody refers to where the child(ren) live. One parent may be awarded sole physical custody, meaning the child(ren) live with them all the time.
Parents can agree to shared or joint physical custody, which means that each parent provides a part-time home for the child(ren). The child(ren) might stay roughly half the time with each parent or live most of the time with one parent but stay with the other regularly.
When one parent has sole physical custody of the child(ren), the other will be granted visitation. “Parenting time” is a phrase that is often used in place of the term “visitation.”
The standard for parents who do not have physical custody is visits every other weekend plus one to two visits during the week, but parents can develop any schedule that works for them and submit it to the court for approval. The non-custodial parent does not always have the right to keep the children overnight.
Sometimes a parent with sole custody wants to limit the other parent’s access to the child(ren). Judges typically will not prevent parents from visiting their child(ren) without proof the parent is unfit. However, a judge could order visits to be supervised in an appropriate case.
Judges encourage parents in Saratoga Springs to work together to formulate a plan for physical and legal custody and visitation that is practical for the parents to implement. Parents retain control when they formulate the plan and can design it so it is workable for all parties.
Parents could work with a mediator to develop an acceptable parenting plan. Couples who cannot communicate constructively could negotiate a plan through their attorneys. When they have agreed on a plan, they submit it to the judge for approval. The judge will formalize it as an enforceable Order after determining that the plan serves the child(ren)’s best interests.
When parents cannot agree, they each submit their preferred plan to the court. The judge may choose the one they believe best serves the children or develop and Order a different plan. Parents are obliged to follow the judge’s plan and must apply to the court for a modification when the plan does not work well for their family.
Custody issues can raise bitterness between spouses and prevent constructive negotiation. An experienced Saratoga Springs family attorney can help you develop a parenting plan that works for your family and supports your child(ren)’s best interests.
Your relationship with your child(ren) is too important to allow a judge to dictate the details. Work with a local legal professional when you need a plan covering physical and legal custody in Saratoga Springs. Call now and get started today.
Colwell Law
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(518) 462-4242