Custody, Visitation, & Child Support

Custody: The law strongly prefers for each parent to have major visitation rights. If you want more custody than the other parent, then you should speak to an attorney before you do anything. If you have not been the primary caretaker or parent, then you should speak to an attorney before you do anything.

Joint Legal Custody: This term does not mean you both need to make every decision together. In fact, it means you each have the right to make major decisions without the other parent’s involvement, as long as certain conditions are met. If that is not what you want, then speak to your attorney.

Joint Physical Custody: This term means each parent may have significant periods of custody. This term does not mean that periods of custody must be equal.

Relocation: Many times, a parent wants to move to a different area with the children after separation. This can be a complicated issue and you should seek a consultation with an attorney highly experienced on this issue before you take any legal steps. At Larose Law, we are highly experienced on the issue of custody relocations.

Child Support: There are two major factors that determine the amount of child support a parent must pay. First, the amount of time, or timeshare, each parent has with the children. Second, the monthly incomes of each parent. Then, a court-sanctioned computer software calculates the child support amount.

The Next Steps
Custody and Visitation: Details matter. All the little things matter. Your attorney will need to know who your children are, how they have lived, and how they have been raised. Just because you were not the primary caretaker during your marriage does not mean you will not have an equal (or better) visitation after separation. And, if you were the primary caretaker, then you will want to make sure you continue in that role after separation.

Custody Evaluations: Custody evaluations are ordered for a variety of reasons. In a custody evaluation, an expert in the field of parenting will create a report based on assessments of the case. They may be done as part of a request to relocate, as part of a claim of estrangement or alienation, as part of a complex custodial matter, or as part of an issue arising from domestic violence or a parent’s ability to care. This is always a complicated issue requiring intense advance planning. We are highly experienced in seeking and obtaining favorable custody evaluations.

Child Support: A financially savvy attorney will make sure all the data going into creating the child support number is accurate. There are also a number of ways a child support order can be challenged if necessary.