Child custody is one of the most complicated aspects of a divorce. If you are not careful, you can make small mistakes that can cost you the custody battle. Here are some of these mistakes.
Leaving the Family Home
Leaving the family home, especially in a setup where you can't access the children regularly, can work against you during the custody hearings. It is almost like abandoning the kids, which hurts your child custody battle. What is more, the remaining parent will be the one taking care of the children daily. For example, the remaining parent will be the one preparing food for the kids, taking the kids to school, and taking care of the kids. This will work to the other parent's advantage when the time comes for the custody hearing.
Refusing Cooperation with the Other Parent
In most cases, a child's life will be smoother if their parents coordinate the child's upbringing. Without cooperation, each parent will be pulling in their own direction, which may end up messing up the kid. Thus, the best thing for you is to cooperate and coordinate with the other parent. You need to agree on how to discipline the child, which school they should attend, and what their curfew hours are. You will be the bad guy if you don't want to be involved in such cooperation.
Speaking Ill of the Other Parent
Parental alienation is a practice of manipulating the child so that they can fear, hate, or generally withdraw from the other parent. Speaking ill of the other parent in the presence of the child is one method of parental alienation. Parental alienation is a form of psychological abuse of the child, and it won't do you any favors when it comes to your custody hearing.
Keeping the Child to Yourself
The courts understand that children need both parents to develop. Therefore, keeping the child to yourself can also hurt your custody chances. You might think that keeping the child to yourself is a way of proving how capable you are of taking care of the child, but it doesn't work that way. Don't forget that taking care of a child is not just about providing for their material needs. Children also need guidance, love, comfort, and discipline and they will get these if both parents are involved in the children's upkeep.
You need to get everything right if you want to get custody of your child. Consult a family law attorney to help you ensure that is the case.
Share12 December 2019
After my mom turned 68 years old, she started doing all kinds of strange things. She spent her monthly retirement checks on excessive amounts of food and clothing but didn't pay her rent or bills on time. At one point, she forgot who I was to her. Since my mom lived alone at an independent apartment complex, I couldn't monitor her behavior every second of the day. I brought these things to my mom's attention, but she refused to get medical help. After my mother called the fire department to report a fake fire, I took legal action. I contacted a general attorney and became my mother's power of attorney. I now had the right to monitor my mom's finances and medical care. If your loved one needs help, read my blog for information on general attorneys. You'll find tips, articles and much more to help you get started.