Sunday, August 12, 2012

DOES THE MOTHER AUTOMATICALLY GET CHILD CUSTODY?

QUESTION: We are going through a divorce. I want to know if I have an advantage being a mother for our child's custody.

MY RESPONSE: Possibly, but not necessarily.

If you have been the children's primary parent since birth, you may receive primary physical custody of the children. If both parents have actively participated in the children's lives, the Court may award joint physical custody to both parties, either 50/50, or in other proportions.

It is best for the children and the parties if the parties work out a timeshare that will provide both parents frequent and continuing contact with the children.

If you can't work out an arrangement between yourselves, the Court will require you to mediate child custody, with a view to resolving the custodial timeshare issues without the need for Court intervention.

A Court Hearing should be the last resort to resolve child custody disputes, because the Judge's decision may not please either party, and the adversary nature of a Court Hearing could further damage the parties' relationship with each other and make it more difficult for the parties to co-parent the children.

Physical custody is the particular time-share that the parents have with the children. Sole physical custody is where the children live with one parent and visit the other parent. Primary physical custody is where the children live with one parent more time than they live with the other parent, who has secondary physical custody. Joint physical custody is where the children live with each parent approximately the same amount of time, although courts frequently consider a 75/35% or even 70/30% time-share split to be joint physical custody.

Legal custody relates to the power to make important decisions about the children's health, education and welfare. Courts have usually awarded joint legal custody to both parties unless the particular facts of the case drive the decision otherwise.

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