Parents involved in a custody situation need to learn the laws and child custody rules that guide the process of custody. Now, every state has different rules and guidelines about child custody. You can find information about your state’s custody laws at Child Custody Laws. However, there are some basic rules and guidelines that every state uses to make their laws. Here are some of those rules to help you with your case.
1. Do what is in the best interest of the child. This is the number one custody rule. Every law in every state is based on the principle of doing what is best for the child. In fact, custody laws are put in place because the child needs to be protected. Make sure that everything you do in your child custody case follows this rule. Too many times parents make the custody situation about themselves or about getting back at the other parent. It should be about doing what is best for the child.
2. Be fair to the other parent. This actually goes along with the previous rule. The mother and father need to be fair to each other during the custody proceedings, because that is best for the child. It is also best for the parents. If the mother and father can work together to come up with a parenting plan, they will both be happier with the result. It will also save countless hours of not returning to court and a lot of money in legal fees.
3. Child visitation isn’t connected to child support. Many parents feel like they can deny visitation if the other parent isn’t up to date on their child support. That’s simply not true (in any state). Child visitation and child support are two different issues. If a parent isn’t paying child support, the other parent should go to court and get the law involved. If a parent denies visitation, than the parent who is denied should go to court and get the law involved (denying visitation goes against the custody order and can be ruled as contempt).
These are just some of the child custody rules that parents should remember. Hopefully they can help your child custody case.