Child custody refers to the obligation to nurture, supervise and educate a child. Often, establishing child custody in a divorce or separation are often the toughest challenges parents must encounter. Decisions regarding child custody are always based on the best interests of the child.

Best Interest of the Child

In order to determine the best interests of a child, there are many factors to be considered such as the age, gender, mental and physical health of the child, the parents’ health condition, the parents’ lifestyle and other social factors, emotional ties between parent and child, the ability of parents to provide food, shelter, clothing and medical care, the quality of schools in a given area, preference of the child if the child is over 12, the ability and willingness of the parent to promote a healthy relationship between the child and the other parent and the security of the environment.

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Types of Custody

The two types of child custody are physical custody and legal custody. Physical custody appoints where the child will actually reside and assigns a parent the right and responsibility to make everyday decisions concerning the child. Joint physical custody does not indicate accurate division of time with each parent but can be based on reasonable time with each parent.

Legal custody means the right and responsibility to decide on significant issues affecting the child such as health, education and welfare. Joint legal custody means that both parents share the rights and responsibilities to make these decisions for the child but they should consult one other as much as possible.

The non-custodial parent is given visitation rights in most cases, which may include weekends, parts of vacations and other occasions. The court can always modify custody if circumstances demand. The court can award joint, physical and/or legal custody if the parents agree.

Child custody rights and responsibilities specify who will have legal and physical custody of the child. Child custody rights are given to parents, step-parents, grandparents, and other legal guardians as determined by a family court judge. Legal decision in child custody rights cases favor biological parents who are considered suitable guardians. Child support payments will also be determined in child custody rights cases if applicable.

Parents can basically determine child custody rights when there are no major disagreements in the terms sought by each party. Mediation is a process by which a neutral third party intervenes to facilitate decisions about child custody rights. When a child custody agreement is made through mediations and approved by a judge, the terms of this parenting plan will be upheld. On the other hand, when there are disagreements over child custody rights, the case will be heard by a judge who will ultimately decide on child custody rights.

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When a judge hears a child custody rights case, several factors are taken into account when making a decision. Often, courts will rely on the expert testimony of a psychologist who will evaluate child custody rights options by looking at relevant factors such as past parenting behavior, the child’s age, the child’s preference, the amount of time a parent can devote to properly raise a child, stability of the household, financial considerations, and other details.

Divorce can be a chaotic experience and dealing with financial matters, visitation and custodial issues can be tough issues to handle on your own. Aside from these concerns, child support is one of the essential legal issues that you need to face. Child support is viewed by the court as a responsibility that both parents equally share even if the couple is not married anymore. Some parents feel they should not pay child support if their visitation rights are limited or not granted. However, child support is treated separately from visitation rights. Enforcing visitation is a separate issue that the court needs to address and it will never affect the court’s stand that an amount of child support should be paid.

A child support lawyer can help ease the confusion when going through the process and assure that the rights of the individuals concerned are protected. A child support lawyer can assist parents to navigate through the state laws in order to understand pertinent details about child support and be able to determine how much compensation the non-custodial parent can expect to pay.

It is essential for parents to keep in mind that child support is a long term financial arrangement that will have to change throughout the years as the income of both parents alters since child support arrangement can be court ordered to continue until the child is 21 years old if the child is attending college or stop at age 18 for a child that is not attending college.

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Child support lawyers can help negotiate a reasonable agreement during divorce mediation if the parents choose to set their own agreed amount. The child support lawyer can also assist in looking at every method to collect child support if the paying parent fails to make payments. Some options can include garnishing earnings or placing a levy against the assets of a parent that does not pay child support. All options should be handled and fully explored with the help of a child support lawyer.

Other situations that can play a great impact on child support can include issues such as when a child is living with a guardian other than a parent. There are children who are living with their grandparents for various reasons and grandparents should realize that children are still eligible for the monetary support even if the care is only anticipated to be short term. Anyone who is supporting a child and is does not receiving child support can get in touch with a child support lawyer and know more about their options for enforcement of payment.

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With all the intricate aspects of child support that you need to handle, there is indeed a need for hiring a child support lawyer. A child support lawyer with excellent credentials and extensive experience can guide you through the legal procedure and can make sure that your child will have a secure future.

Aside from the emotional dilemma, there are several legal aspects that need to be negotiated and resolved in a divorce. Because of this, most divorcing couples perceive that having a friendly divorce is nearly impossible. However, if you begin a new working relationship with your spouse on the right basis and maintain an open communication to minimize hostility to all people involved, having an amicable divorce is still achievable. Here are 10 tips you can follow to have a friendly divorce.

Take Control of Your Divorce

As much as possible, you and your spouse should keep control over your divorce by mutually deciding about certain issues such as division of assets or child custody and support. If there are certain aspects that you cannot agree upon, you may consult a divorce mediator to help you and your spouse negotiate and resolve difficult issues and minimize tension.

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Take Care of Your Health

Divorce can also be physically draining so be sure that you eat a well-balanced diet, get adequate rest, and do activities that will help relieve stress. If you take good care of your health, you will be less likely to act upon extreme emotion such as resentment and frustration.

Establish Common Goals with Your Spouse

Work towards common goals in your divorce as to how you want to proceed with your divorce, what you want for your children, how you will communicate with each other during the divorce process, and how you will settle conflicts to achieve as much harmony as possible.

Understand Your Spouse’s Perspective

More often than not, people see things from their own viewpoint. It will be easier for you to negotiate a divorce settlement if you make the best effort to understand your spouse’s opinions and needs.

Establish a Parenting Plan

Establish a plan regarding future decisions about your parenting style, and parenting time as well as your children’s health, education, and emotional welfare. Decide whether you want joint custody or if one parent will have primary custody of the children. You should choose which home will be the children’s primary residence.

Make a Complete List of Assets

Include your real estate and retirement accounts and find out the value of those assets. Take account of assets that are jointly owned and those that are owned separately. Before proceeding with mediation session, decide how these assets will be distributed between the spouses.

Understand Your Debt Situation

Make a list of all credit cards, loans, outstanding bills, and mortgages and specify if the debt is under your name, your spouse’s name, or joint. Consider the income of each spouse and decide who will be accountable for paying each debt and when they should be paid.

List Your Income and Expenses

List all sources of your income and your monthly expenses as well as expenditures related to the divorce. Also, include your children’s expenses if they will be living with you.

Decide on the Lifestyle You Want Post-Divorce

Determine if you will be able to live the lifestyle you had during the marriage. Calculate each spouse’s financial needs by using your income and expense list.

Attempt Mediation

A mediator can help you in pursuing a friendly divorce by giving suggestions and advice to achieve a more positive outcome of your negotiation.

With appropriate planning and an honest desire to reach agreement, you and your spouse can achieve a friendly divorce.

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When dealing with visitation, the ultimate role of parents is to prioritize the time they spend with their children and make visitation arrangements as smooth-sailing as possible for them. In most cases, visitation nurtures or even enhances the children’s relationship with their family. On the other hand, visitation creates further conflicts in some cases. The parents’ attitude is the most significant factor in establishing peace and consistency during visitation.

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You can come up with a good parenting plan if you put the best interests of your child before your own. If you are going through a proceeding with child support and visitation orders, the following are some suggestions that may help you:

Initially, you must consider breaking down your child visitation schedule according to age and gender. For instance an infant to 18 months; 18 months to three years; three to six years and so on. As the child develops, it will permit you to plan different arrangements if you divide your visitation time into smaller units.

You must make a list of the child’s daily activities, school work, and the like. You also need to consider the age, traits, experiences, and ability of your child. Bear in mind that each child is different and that you need to adjust the scheduling time according to each particular need of the child.

The child visitation schedule should be flexible and practical. Your plan may need to be modified as your children get older and their lifestyles change. The preference of the children may be given importance by the judge if they reach a certain age.

Anticipate that you are not going to be with your child every single birthday or holiday. You must be willing to make special considerations and compromises along the way. You must maintain an open and direct communication with the co-parent in order to maintain a good working relationship.

If you settle a child visitation agreement, be sure to write it down. Then, you may consider hiring a lawyer to review your draft in order to ensure that you did not overlook anything important and that you have not created future conflicts. In some unfortunate situations, the thing that you disregarded as a minor issue may be the one that can be used by a co-parent against you.

To make certain that the child visitation agreement is upheld, you should have it signed by the judge. As long as it is in the best interests of the child, a judge will approve whatever visitation agreement both the co-parents decide upon. This is typically in the form of a provision, a form that can be obtained from the court or from the website of the state’s official court.

As much as possible, you must settle visitation issues between the two of you. If it is possible to achieve a resolution, you do not need to spend financial resources on costly and lengthy court litigation. As for the court, what is just and in the best interests of the child will rule its decision so do not expect that you will get everything that you want in the visitation arrangement.

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Aside from your divorce petition, you must complete and file a number of documents to initiate your divorce proceedings successfully. You should be knowledgeable about the process of divorce filing, divorce types and the uses of each document that you need to start the divorce process whether you get a lawyer to represent you in the divorce case or you choose to file on your own. There is also a necessity to learn about the divorce laws in your state, the rules of family court, and your rights as well as your spouse’s. Here is a simple guide in applying for divorce.

Make a draft of the petition for divorce. The divorce petition is a document that highlights important facts about you, the petitioner and your spouse, the respondent, and your marriage. In the divorce petition, you must request that the court terminate the marriage, regain non-marital property and make orders concerning child custody and support if you have children. This petition must be notarized and must include verification as required by the family court. Verification is a statement that indicates that you have read the document and believe that its contents are correct. If your jurisdiction only acknowledges no-fault divorces, you must declare that the marriage is irreversibly broken and you must fulfill the separation period set by your jurisdiction before you can file for divorce. If your state honors fault divorces, you must determine a ground for divorce that is recognized in your jurisdiction. This may include adultery, abandonment or cruelty.

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Complete a financial disclosure that is mandated by the court. After filing or receiving service of the petition, both parties are required to submit a financial disclosure to the court and to each other within a specific period. The financial disclosure should be supplemented with important financial documents such as income tax filings and proof of income.

You must complete other court forms if required by the family court for record keeping or statistical purposes. These forms may request personal identification information or biographical information about you, your spouse and any children.

You should also complete a civil summons and deliver it to your spouse in order to serve your spouse with the divorce petition properly. Because only lawyers and court clerks have access to blank civil summons forms, you must have them provide you with this document.

It is important to remember that when all of your documents are already completed and are ready for filing, you must make a copy to serve your spouse with. On the other hand, the original documents must be filed with the court. There are a variety of ways to serve your spouse. It may include serving your spouse by first class mail or by sheriff. You may contact your lawyer or the family court in order to determine the appropriate filing fee and methods of payment that are applicable. You must not forget that if you opt to serve your spouse by sheriff, you should pay an extra fee.

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During divorce, creditors are not interested in how property and obligations are distributed between the two parties. You must keep in mind that you and your spouse are both responsible for paying your debts if you have liabilities in your joint accounts

Remember that creditors are not bound legally to abide by your final divorce decree. The order of the judge does not prevail over what you owe your creditors. If you have a joint account and one spouse cannot pay, the other is responsible for paying it off. A court cannot cancel contracts between individuals unless they are fraudulent or illegal so your contract with your creditors remains valid until the debt is paid off. Here are the two most common myths about divorce decrees and your credit that you should know.

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First Myth: A Divorce Decree Can Free a Spouse from Financial Obligations of Joint Debts

The fact is that debts that were acquired under the name of both spouses before a divorce remain the responsibility of both parties after a divorce, regardless of what a divorce decree declares. Since both of you signed a legally binding contract with the creditor, this means both of you signed a document that says you are both responsible for the debt, and the divorce decree does not make changes on this contract. If any contract is to be changed, it requires that all parties should agree to it including the creditor. Evidence of the amendment necessitates the signature of all parties concerned. During a divorce, the point of view of creditors is not even sought by the court. Therefore the original agreements or contracts prevail. As a result, if your former spouse fails to pay a debt that he or she is appointed to pay in a divorce decree, you are held accountable to it.

Second Myth: If my Former Spouse Does Not Pay the Debts Assigned to Him or Her in the Divorce, a Divorce Decree Can Protect my Credit

If you have a joint financial accountability with your former spouse and it is stated in your divorce decree that your ex-spouse is accountable for paying it, and your ex-spouse is negligent on paying, both of your credit will be badly affected. Again, your legal obligation for a debt is not nullified because a divorce decree designates your former spouse to pay off those debts. Together with the legal duty to pay comes the right of the creditor to report the delinquency on your credit report if the debt is not paid punctually as established in the original contract.

This information about the relationship of your divorce decrees and your financial obligations is indeed a very important eye opener for many people who believe that a divorce decree can save them from financial responsibilities particularly of joint accounts. The safest way in order to safeguard your financial stability in the advent of divorce is to cancel all joint accounts and have your own individual account.

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Being prepared mentally, emotionally and financially is essential before you file a divorce. You need to safeguard the important matters such as your relationship with your spouse and your children and your financial stability before even telling your spouse that you want a divorce. Cautious planning and consultation with the right people should be the first steps you should take before filing a divorce.

Talk to a Marriage Counselor

Talking to a marriage counselor can help you even if you feel that there is no hope for you and your spouse to reconcile and get back together because it can help you realize the mistakes you committed in the past, and learn how to adjust, recover and finally move on.

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Seek Legal Advice from an Attorney

It is still more prudent to consult a lawyer first to get relevant details that you need to know about divorce even if you decide not to avail his or her services as your divorce attorney. The result of your divorce is affected by any actions you may take so you need to understand the options that are available for you in advance.

Talk to a Lawyer First before Moving Out of the House

If you leave the house without a reasonable cause, it may either cause you to pay child support or it may result in your failure to obtain alimony. In addition, you may be unable to return if you leave the house until after the court divides the property which might take more than one year. Unless your spouse is violent, it is best to stay in the house until after you talk with a lawyer.

Talk to a Lawyer First if you Had Extra-marital Affairs

In some states, adultery is considered illegal and if you admit having extra marital affairs, it can have terrible consequences on your part. You have to remember that if your spouse is a candidate for alimony, any forbidden sexual behavior on your part during the marriage including the time you are separated from your spouse can cost you additional thousands of dollars in child support payments.

Safeguard your Assets

A possible step to take to safeguard your assets is to get an injunction restraining your spouse from transferring or disposing any property covered by the restraining order. If your spouse possesses a separate property that you own and refuses to give it to you, an injunction can also be used by your lawyer to get your separate property returned to you.

Other measures that you may consider when you plan a divorce include closing joint credit cards and joint bank accounts to protect your own credit rating, opening accounts under your own individual name and changing the name of the party who is responsible on utility and other bills.

These preparations can help you before you move forward with the divorce. When you attend to these issues first before you or your partner decide to terminate your marriage, you will have a greater advantage during legal negotiations.

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One of the most vital considerations when faced with divorce is to sustain your financial stability. Negotiating the best possible divorce settlement should be your major concern to secure your future and your children’s. Before you file for divorce, you and your spouse together with your lawyers must discuss how your marital assets should be divided. Here are some of the significant points to consider before you negotiate for a settlement.

Health Insurance

If one of the couples has health insurance, the court will oblige that person to carry coverage for their children. If neither the husband nor the wife has health insurance, generally the parent who won custody should request that the insurance cost be included in the sum of alimony paid.

College Tuition

If you have children, it is best for you and your child that college expenses are already negotiated even at the initial settlement agreement. There will be out of pocket expenses that need to be paid even though most of the education expenses can be paid by low interest loans, financial assistance or your child’s part time employment. Even if your child is still too young at the time of the divorce settlement, you should be able to take care of this issue so that when the time comes that your child goes to college, you do not need to go back to court anymore to settle concerns about his or her education .

Marital House

If you are the custodial parent and you want to keep the marital home, one of the important things to consider is to maintain the lifestyle that your child has become familiar with. Aside from that, your marital home can be a valuable asset. However, you should consider the cost of keeping and maintaining the marital home. You should contemplate whether or not you can be able to take on the responsibility. Remember that you also have an option of selling the house and acquire a liquid asset that can be invested in a more reasonably priced house.

Cost of Daily Expenses

The expenses of meeting your child’s everyday needs should be taken into consideration if you are the custodial parent. You should not only think of his or her basic needs but additional needs that your child may need along the way such as the expense of day care or even the extracurricular activities at school that your child may become passionate about. The cost of gas whenever you drive your children to different activities should also be included. Some state courts permit these expenditures to be included in the amount of child support paid.

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When you negotiate your divorce settlement, you need to ponder carefully about your financial stability and your children’s future as well. By considering these important points, you can negotiate the best possible divorce settlement and attain financial security.

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Divorce records contain a lot of sensitive facts. Details about the division of assets, child support and child custody are some of the important information that you can see when you access a divorce record. As what we all know, divorce records are documents that are open for public disclosure. Many celebrity news programs actually benefit from it by disclosing divorce records of famous personalities. However, when sensitive issues surround the case such as physical or sexual abuse of minor children, divorce records are considered confidential.

What You Should Know

To find a divorce record of an individual, you at least need to know the last name of the person you are searching for and the state in which he or she filed the divorce. It can also be helpful if you know other pertinent information such as the full name of the person you are searching for, the name of the person whom he or she was divorced from, the locality in which the divorce was filed, the person’s present or previous address and the divorce decree date.

How to Find Divorce Records

It is quite a difficult task to find divorce records of people. To view the details of a particular divorce record, you usually have to go to the local office where the divorce was filed. If the settlement was done in another state, you still need to travel to the office of the county clerk where the records can be found. You may be able to view the documents for free, but you may be charged for the copies of the divorce records.

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Presently, the online method of finding divorce records is being eyed by many as the fastest and easiest method of retrieving divorce records. By using the service of internet-based companies, you can readily view the records from your computer without being asked a single question. All you have to do is to provide the names of the spouses and the state where the divorce was made.

Many people think that the online method of finding divorce records will not cost them any cent since online sites tag them as “free”. However, these so called free divorce records are not actually free. When you search for a particular person online, the website will provide the different names, ages, and locations of people with similar names. Now this information is free. But if you want to actually view or read the divorce record, most of these websites will direct you to another page where payment information is needed for the record to be accessed. The price depends on the extent of information you want to know and the online company you were searching with.

On the other hand, there are states that have online search systems to be able to assist you in searching the information you need. Likewise, it is still most advisable to call the clerks’ office because they will be able to direct you to an online record retrieval system or may even look up the information that you need on your behalf.

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Each of us has different beliefs and perspectives in life. This is why having disagreements with someone is a fairly typical scenario that happens every day. Having different opinions about every single topic under the sun can often result in conflicts. Although we can never avoid engaging in disagreements, it does not mean that there is no way to resolve them. You can actually deal with a disagreement positively if you know how to handle it properly. Not only can it make you a more mature individual but it can also improve your working relationship with your ex.

Co-parenting needs teamwork. However, as co-parents, having disagreements over certain issues that involve your child is unavoidable. So here are some of the ways that can help you avoid having conflicts with your ex or perhaps patching up disagreements if there are any.

Respect is Everything

Effective co-parenting and respect should go hand in hand. Do not disregard simple gestures like letting your ex-spouse know about your child’s school activities or your kid’s appointment with the doctor. Another way of showing respect is to have a flexible schedule to show that you are willing to discuss important issues with him or her. Also, asking for your ex’s opinion on certain matters and taking it seriously shows that you indeed value and respect his or her beliefs. You should also use polite words such as “Can we try…” or “Is it okay with you if…” whenever you want to ask for a favor.

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Communicate Constantly

You cannot just walk away from your ex whenever you disagree about something. Remember, this is not about you and your ex. You are dealing with your child’s life which is at stake. No matter what, you should constantly communicate with your ex as a responsible co-parent and settle your differences as soon as possible. If, despite all your efforts, you still disagree with each other, talking to a therapist or a mediator will greatly help in resolving your differences.

Do not Dwell on Small Deals

You cannot deal with different issues in one similar way. First, you have to distinguish the small deals from the big deals. You have to find out if an issue needs cautious decision making and might require a longer time for deliberation or an issue that you just have to let go right there and then. Some examples of issues that are indeed worth contemplating are your child’s educational necessities, medical provisions or financial needs. Petty issues like disagreeing whether your child should go to bed at 8:00 or 8:30 just require just a modest negotiation and should not take much of your time and strength.

Meet Halfway

Knowing the pros and cons of a certain circumstance and negotiating halfway so both parties can win is compromising. It is a simple give and take process. In order to do this, you should be reasonable and understanding enough. Avoid being inconsiderate and self-centered.

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