B
O
C
When divorcing parents cannot agree about parenting
arrangements for their children, a prolonged custody conflict has
only two predictable results.
First, the intense conflict between the parents that usually
attends a child custody battle is likely to be very disruptive and
upsetting to the child. If at all possible, it is usually best for the
children if the parents, and not a judge, make decisions about
parenting arrangements after a divorce.
Second, a parent gearing up for a child custody battle must be
prepared to pay substantial legal fees and will likely also be
required by the Court to pay for some or all of the cost of a
guardian ad litem. A guardian ad litem (or "GAL") is an
independent lawyer or mental health professional appointed by
the Court to investigate the situation and submit a report and
recommendations to the judge.
There are four forms of child custody with which you should be
familiar:
Sole Legal Custody -- one parent will have the right and
responsibility to make major decisions regarding the child's
welfare, for example, where the child goes to school, what
religion the child will be raised in and what sort of medical care
the child should receive.
Shared Legal Custody -- continued mutual responsibility and
involvement by both parents in major decisions regarding the
welfare of the child.
Sole Physical Custody -- a child will reside with and be under
the supervision of one parent, with reasonable visitation granted
to the other parent unless the court determines that visitation
would not be in the child's best interests.
Shared Physical Custody -- a child will have periods of residing
with and being under the supervision of each parent. For
example, a child will spend four days with mom and the next four
days with dad. Another example of shared physical custody is if
brother lives primarily with dad and sister lives primarily with
mom.
The most common arrangement is shared legal custody, with
primary physical custody with one parent or the other. Sole legal
custody may be appropriate if communication between the
parties has completely broken down, one parent has abandoned
the family, or if there are domestic violence or substance abuse
issues within the family. Although currently less common, many
creative shared physical custody arrangements are possible if
the parties can agree and the best interests of the children are
served.
If a child custody conflict is unavoidable, then the standard that a
judge uses to determine with which parent a child will live is "best
interests of the child". In order to make this determination, a
judge will consider many factors, including which parent has
been the primary caregiver in the past, the quality of each
parent's relationship with the child, and which parent has the
economic, physical and emotional capacity to better meet the
child's current and future needs.
arrangements for their children, a prolonged custody conflict has
only two predictable results.
First, the intense conflict between the parents that usually
attends a child custody battle is likely to be very disruptive and
upsetting to the child. If at all possible, it is usually best for the
children if the parents, and not a judge, make decisions about
parenting arrangements after a divorce.
Second, a parent gearing up for a child custody battle must be
prepared to pay substantial legal fees and will likely also be
required by the Court to pay for some or all of the cost of a
guardian ad litem. A guardian ad litem (or "GAL") is an
independent lawyer or mental health professional appointed by
the Court to investigate the situation and submit a report and
recommendations to the judge.
There are four forms of child custody with which you should be
familiar:
Sole Legal Custody -- one parent will have the right and
responsibility to make major decisions regarding the child's
welfare, for example, where the child goes to school, what
religion the child will be raised in and what sort of medical care
the child should receive.
Shared Legal Custody -- continued mutual responsibility and
involvement by both parents in major decisions regarding the
welfare of the child.
Sole Physical Custody -- a child will reside with and be under
the supervision of one parent, with reasonable visitation granted
to the other parent unless the court determines that visitation
would not be in the child's best interests.
Shared Physical Custody -- a child will have periods of residing
with and being under the supervision of each parent. For
example, a child will spend four days with mom and the next four
days with dad. Another example of shared physical custody is if
brother lives primarily with dad and sister lives primarily with
mom.
The most common arrangement is shared legal custody, with
primary physical custody with one parent or the other. Sole legal
custody may be appropriate if communication between the
parties has completely broken down, one parent has abandoned
the family, or if there are domestic violence or substance abuse
issues within the family. Although currently less common, many
creative shared physical custody arrangements are possible if
the parties can agree and the best interests of the children are
served.
If a child custody conflict is unavoidable, then the standard that a
judge uses to determine with which parent a child will live is "best
interests of the child". In order to make this determination, a
judge will consider many factors, including which parent has
been the primary caregiver in the past, the quality of each
parent's relationship with the child, and which parent has the
economic, physical and emotional capacity to better meet the
child's current and future needs.
BOGLE
OKOYE
CHANG
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BOGLE & CHANG, LLC
Copyright © 2010 Bogle & Chang, LLC. All Rights Reserved.
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Family Law: Child Custody
DOES THE MOTHER ALWAYS GET
CUSTODY? NO.
Contrary to popular belief, the mother does not
always win custody of the children after a
contested child custody trial. With fathers and
mothers more equally involved in child-rearing
and with both parents having work schedules to
consider, in many situations there can be a
legitimate dispute about which parent should
have primary responsibility for the children after
a divorce.
The law in Massachusetts is that parents have
an equal right to the custody of their children,
and judges are increasingly making decisions
based not upon the gender of the parent, but
upon an examination of the quality of a child's
relationship with each parent, and an
assessment of each parent's capacity to
effectively nurture the child.
CUSTODY? NO.
Contrary to popular belief, the mother does not
always win custody of the children after a
contested child custody trial. With fathers and
mothers more equally involved in child-rearing
and with both parents having work schedules to
consider, in many situations there can be a
legitimate dispute about which parent should
have primary responsibility for the children after
a divorce.
The law in Massachusetts is that parents have
an equal right to the custody of their children,
and judges are increasingly making decisions
based not upon the gender of the parent, but
upon an examination of the quality of a child's
relationship with each parent, and an
assessment of each parent's capacity to
effectively nurture the child.
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