The following article "Foreign Travel With Minor Children - What Documents Are Required" appeared on the blog "Updates in Michigan Family Law" written by Jeanne M. Hannah, Esq., and is very useful for Arizonan's especially. It deals with travel out of the country with children. Ms. Hannah has been a long-time family law blogger and is insighful and well-respected. Check out her blog regularly.
Children with special needs further complicate child custody and care issues during and after a divorce. As a result, your family law attorney needs to know what parents rights are under the Individuals with Disabilities Act (IDEA) and with the Section 504 (504) in the Americans With Disabilities Act when advising their clients and when crafting custody agreements.
The following article "Impact of Divorce Agreements on Special Education Decision-Making" highlights some issues and concerns to think about when one of your client's children are suspected of having or are diagnosed with a learning or emotional disability.
When there are children involved in divorce cases in Arizona (or paternity cases), many questions arise as to how child custody is resolved. Arizona Statutes deal with child custody issues in Arizona divorce and paternity cases and are a great first place to start.
Some definitions need to be known and understood. For instance, with respect to Arizona child custody, "Joint legal custody" means the condition under which both parents share legal custody. In this situation, "both parents share legal custody and neither parent's rights are superior, except with respect to specified decisions set forth by the court or the parents in a final judgment or order." Normally, the major decisions regarding a child involve medical, education and religion. Most other decisions made by a parent such as daily activies of the child, what the children eat and wear, etc. are made by the parent who has physical custody of the child at the time the decision needs to be made.
That brings us to "Joint physical custody", which is defined as "the condition under which the physical residence of the child is shared by the parents in a manner that assures that the child has substantially equal time and contact with both parents." What "substantially equally time and contact with both parents" is, of course, where many problems may arise as both parents may have very different views on this subject.
In an Arizona divorce or paternity case, if mother and father are unable to reach an agreement as to what custody arrangements should be put in place for their child, Arizona statute authorizes the court to award when deciding child custody that custody be either "sole" or "joint". Importantly, there is no presumption in favor of one custody arrangement over the other. And, "the court in determing custody shall not prefer a parent as custodian because of that parent's sex". So, the sex of the parent when determing child custody in Arizona should not be a factor in the court's decision.
Many questions often arise about "what is in the child's best interests" in Arizona custody cases. The divorce or paternity case judge considers the following: 1. the wishes of the child's parents; 2. the wishes of the child; 3. the interaction and interrelationship of the child with the parents, the child's siblings and any others who may significantly affect the child's best interests; 4. the child's adjustment to home, school and community; 5. the mental and physical health of all individuals involved; 6. which parent is more likely to allow the child frequent and meaningful continuing contact with the other parent; 7. whether one parent, both parents or neither parent has provided primary care of the child; 8. the nature and extent of coercion or duress used by a parent in obtaining an agreement regarding custody; and 9. whether either parent was convicted of an act of false reporting of child abuse.
Of course, this is only the basics. When dealing with Arizona child custody disputes each case is different because no two situations are exactly the same. Facts always differ. If you have any questions regarding Arizona child custody in the context of an Arizona divorce or paternity case, contact Nirenstein Garnice Soderquist PLC.
While some couples are putting off divorce because they can’t afford it, the situation is different for moneyed clients. Since their assets are worth less, a lot of monied spouses believe the time is ripe to divorce because they will have to give less to the other spouse. This may be especially true where the more financially empowered spouse wants to keep the marital residence and their 401(k) and other retirement plans.
Bird's nest custody is a joint custody arrangement where the children remain in the family home and the parents take turns moving in and out, spending their out time in separate housing of their own.
Copyright © 2005 Nolo
Parents who don't live together have joint custody (also called shared custody) when they share the decision-making responsibilities for, and/or physical control and custody of, their children. Joint custody can exist if the parents are divorced, separated, or no longer cohabiting, or even if they never lived together. Joint custody may be:
Continue Reading...One parent can have either sole legal custody or sole physical custody of a child. In most states, courts are moving away from awarding sole custody to one parent and toward enlarging the role a divorced father plays in his children's lives. Even where courts do award sole physical custody , the parties often still share joint legal custody, and the noncustodial parent enjoys a generous visitation schedule. In that situation, the parents would make joint decisions about the child's upbringing, but one parent would be deemed the primary physical caretaker, while the other parent would have visitation rights.
Continue Reading...Physical custody means that a parent has the right to have a child live with him or her. Some states will award joint physical custody to both parents when the child spends significant amounts of time with both parents. Where the child lives primarily with one parent and has visitation with the other, generally the parent with whom the child primarily lives will have sole physical custody, with visitation to the other parent. Joint physical custody works best if parents live relatively near to each other, as it lessens the stress on children and allows them to maintain a somewhat normal routine.
Copyright © 2005 Nolo
Legal custody of a child means having the right and the obligation to make decisions about a child's upbringing. A parent with legal custody can make decisions about schooling, religion, and medical care, for example. In many states, courts regularly award joint legal custody, which means that the decision making is shared by both parents.
Continue Reading...QUESTION:
Am I presumed "fit" in regards to my visitation and custody rights, unless good cause is shown and proven otherwise by competent, substantial evidence?
Is there a law that says I cannot have visitation and custody without a guardian ad litem or a psychological evaluation to determine fitness?
Continue Reading...When a court determines the visitation rights of a noncustodial parent, it usually orders "reasonable" visitation , leaving it to the parents to work out a more precise schedule of time and place. Reasonable visitation allows the parents to exercise flexibility by taking into consideration both the parents' and the children's schedules. Practically speaking, however, the parent with physical custody has more control over the dates, times and duration of visits. He or she isn't legally obligated to agree to any particular schedule, but judges do take note of who is and who is not flexible. If you are inflexible, merely to vex your ex, it can backfire when you need to ask the court for something in the future.
Continue Reading...No. Courts frequently award at least partial custody to both parents, called "joint custody." Joint custody takes at least one of three forms:
In every state, courts are willing to order joint legal custody. About half the states are reluctant to order joint physical custody unless both parents agree to it and appear to be able to communicate effectively and cooperate with each other. In New Mexico and New Hampshire, courts are required to award joint custody, except where the children's best interests -- or a parent's health or safety -- would be compromised. Many other states expressly allow courts to order joint custody, even if one parent objects to such an arrangement.
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