Stillwater Child Custody Lawyer

Stillwater Child Custody Lawyer

If you are facing child custody concerns – whether related to divorce or in the form of a modification – it’s a serious matter that requires your serious attention. Child custody relates to whom your children live with (and when) and to who will be making important decisions on your children’s behalf. If you have child custody questions or concerns, an experienced Stillwater child custody lawyer can help.

Types of Child Custody

Child custody addresses both legal and physical custody. Legal custody refers to who will be making important decisions for your children, including decisions about:

• Their health care
• Their education
• Their religious upbringing
• Their extracurricular activities

Legal custody can be sole, which means that only one parent has the right to make these important decisions, or joint, which means both parents share the rights and responsibilities involved. Physical custody refers to the schedule in which your children live with you. While physical custody can also be sole or joint, it’s rare for a parent not to have a visitation schedule (no matter how limited) with his or her children – even if the kids’ other parent has sole custody. The court finds that children are generally better off when they are able to spend time with and continue forming strong bonds with both parents. 

Agreeing to Child Custody Arrangements

Whether you’re facing a divorce or a child custody modification, you and your children’s other parent have the right to agree to mutually acceptable arrangements between yourselves and subsequently provide them to the court. If you’re too far apart on the matter, however, your respective child custody lawyers can negotiate on behalf of your best interests, and if this fails to accomplish a compromise that works, you still have the option of mediation before you need to take the matter before the court. 

At mediation, a professional mediator will help you (aided by your child custody lawyer) explore alternatives that may open up common ground with your ex. If this doesn’t get you any closer to a compromise, the court will need to intervene. The court always prioritizes the best interests of the children involved, but ceding your right to make important decisions regarding your children is never ideal.

The Court’s Consideration

If your child custody concern needs to be settled by the court, it will take a wide range of factors into consideration in its decision-making process, including:

• Your children’s individual needs (including emotional, physical, cultural, and spiritual needs)
• Any special needs your children have
• Your children’s input in the matter (if mature enough to weigh in)
• Whether either of you has a serious health concern (either mental or physical)
• Whether either of you suffers from substance abuse
• Your separate levels of contribution to raising your children  
• Whether domestic abuse is a factor

Don’t Wait to Consult with an Experienced Stillwater Child Custody Lawyer

If you’re facing a child custody concern, you shouldn’t delay reaching out to the dedicated Stillwater child custody lawyers at Atticus Family Law. We are committed to providing you with the full force of our skill and experience in pursuit of child custody arrangements that support you and your children’s best interests. We’re here to help, so please don’t hesitate to contact us for more information today.