If you and the other parent are not able to work out a parenting plan together, you will need to go to court and present your plan to a judge. In court, you (or your attorney) and the other parent will both show your proposed custody agreement and explain why it is in the best interest of the child. The judge will then decide which plan to accept.
Custody X Change can help you prepare and present a plan in court so that the judge understands how your plan benefits your child. You can use Custody X Change when representing yourself and when working with an attorney to make sure your plan is the one the court chooses.
Custody X Change helps you prepare, organize, and present your custody information to the judge. As you use the professional reports and documents from the software, you'll be able to help the judge see why your plan is the best one for your child.
Prepare your agreement. The software guides you through the process of making a thorough parenting plan. You begin by making a parenting time schedule that has a residential schedule, holiday schedule, school break and vacation schedule, and special events. Then you can add important custody stipulations and provisions to your agreement. You can then print all of this information in a well organized document that clearly shows the details of your plan.
Organize your information. Creating your plan and printing the documents helps you organize the information you want to present to the court so that you can explain your custody agreement clearly and succinctly. You can simply follow the format of the printed agreement as you present your plan and this will help you remember to cover everything you want. Your ideas will be contained and organized so your presentation won't be scattered and this will help you present more confidently to the court.
Explain your plan using professional documents. Using the professional documents from the software will help the judge see and understand your parenting plan. With the documents from the software you can:
- Show the court a visual calendar with each parent's time clearly marked;
- Explain your parenting time schedule using a report that shows the breakdown of the timeshare percentage of each parent;
- Use the report of your entire plan to help the judge see how it benefits your child;
- Give copies of your plan to the other parent and the judge while you present;
Many parents find that using Custody X Change to represent themselves in custody court makes them an equal match for a family law attorney. Judges and courts are impressed with the parenting plans that you create with the software, and the documents make it easy to show and explain your agreement.
If you are working with an attorney you can still use Custody X Change to help with court. Even though you won't be the one who shows your plan to the judge, you will work with your attorney so that your attorney presents the plan you want. You need to be proactive in working with your lawyer so that he/she understands what kind of custody agreement you want. Custody X Change is a great tool for communicating your ideas to your attorney and this helps your attorney present a good agreement to the court. With the software, you can:
- Show your attorney your ideas for parenting time schedules so that you get the schedule you want;
- Think through the terms and conditions of your agreement so that you don't leave any important information out;
- Explain to your attorney the type of plan that you want so that your attorney can explain it to the court;
- Save money in legal fees by doing some of the work on your agreement and giving it to your lawyer (instead of having your lawyer draft the agreement, you can make it on your own);
- Track a plan that is already in place so you can see how well it is being followed; and
- Document how a plan isn't being followed and give the reports to your attorney so you can get an agreement modified or changed.
You are the one who understands your custody situation the best. This means that you need to stay actively involved in the process of creating a parenting plan, even if you have an attorney working for you. Custody X Change is a valuable tool that allows you to be in control of your custody situation. You can come up with your ideas for a plan and show them to your attorney. And, after a plan is in place, you can keep track of how well it is being followed.