Safeguarding Your Relationship With Your Child
Despite how strained a relationship might be between divorcing couples, every parent has the right to a positive, meaningful relationship with their children. The majority of divorcing parents want a future that includes sufficient quality time with their children and the ability to assist in their upbringing.
S. Roger Rombro and Melinda A. Manley at Rombro & Manley LLP, will use their decades of legal experience to guide you through child custody proceedings.
We can help you arrive at a favorable joint custody arrangement that safeguards your relationship with your child. Reach the firm online or call 310-545-1900 to learn more.
A Closer Look At Joint Custody Arrangements
Parents sharing joint legal custody must work together in decisions concerning their child’s health care, education and similar matters. In rarer instances, the court may make a joint legal custody ruling, but exclude shared decision-making on a particular issue. Instead, the decision-making power will be granted to only one parent.
The clear advantage to joint custody is that it provides assurance that both parents play an important role in their developing children’s lives.
Physical custody defines when a child is physically under the care of a parent. Joint physical custody may be granted, whereby a child spends a significant amount of time with each parent. In other instances, an arrangement is made where one parent has primary physical custody, or sole physical custody, and the other parent has visitation rights.
Creating A Custody Calendar
Parents who share joint custody are encouraged to develop a custody calendar according to their work schedule, living arrangements and the child’s needs. In many cases, the child splits weeks between each parent’s home. Alternatively, joint physical custody arrangements may involve:
- Alternating days or weeks between parents
- Spending part of the week with one parent, part of the week with the other parent
- Holidays are usually shared or alternated
If the parents cannot come to an agreement, the court will impose a custody schedule.
Why Choose Joint Custody?
The clear advantage to joint custody is that it provides assurance that the child will have continual contact with each parent. A joint arrangement can also serve to alleviate some parenting burdens in evenly allocating responsibilities.
That said, one significant disadvantage to true joint custody is that children need to be transported from one parent’s house to the other, and the parents’ and child’s schedules need to be aligned. These arrangements can be time-consuming, and potentially create conflicts. Our attorneys can work closely with you to weigh the pros and cons of each type of custody arrangement.
Contact Us Today
To secure your parental rights, it is strongly advisable that parents obtain a written, legally binding child custody and visitation agreement. The divorce lawyers of Rombro & Manley LLP have the extensive legal knowledge and advocacy skills required to best represent you in your child custody case. Find out more by calling 310-545-1900 or using our online form.