If you are divorcing your child's other parent, you should first consider the value of mediating your custody case. This approach also works well with unmarried parents who are ending their relationship with one another but want to stay firmly involved in their...
Child Custody
Could having an obese child cause a parent to lose custody?
If you are the parent of an overweight child, you may be concerned for them on several levels. On the one hand, you don't want to see your child get bullied for being overweight, with all the accompanying social stigmas that can bring.But even more than that, you have...
Who pays child support when parents share joint custody?
Both parents have certain parental rights. Moms and dads are entitled to visitation or custody of their children. They're both obligated to support their son or daughter financially, though. It can be challenging for moms and dads and the court to decide who should...
You might have grounds to seek sole custody
Divorcing parents here in California and elsewhere are typically encouraged to file for joint custody of their children. The family law courts have determined that shared custody and parenting time are in the best interests of most children.As that is the guiding...
What do the ‘best interests of the child’ mean?
In custody cases here in California and elsewhere, you hear how the family law courts must make decisions based on the best interests of the child. But what does that even mean?The United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child under Article 3 states the "best...
Differing parenting styles can make custody decisions tough
If you are in the throes of divorce, setting up your child custody arrangements can seem like it's a nightmare that never ends. After all, if you were able to agree with your spouse on important issues like how to raise the kids, you might not have wound up in divorce...
State restrictions could pose child care nightmare
Nearly 40 million Californians are waking up to mandated home restrictions put in place by Gov. Gavin Newsom in a response to the coronavirus pandemic. Yet, still many others have to go to work at jobs that are considered essential.For many divorced California...
Could mental illness cause you to lose custody of your kids?
Mental illness robs its sufferers of many things, but perhaps the cruelest is the right to parent their own children. Loss of custody rates for those diagnosed with mental illnesses can be as high as 80%.If you are a parent who is living with a mental illness, you...
Can you afford to rear your grandchildren?
When you pictured your golden years as a young parent, what did you envision? Likely, you dreamed of a comfortable retirement, maybe some travel visiting with and spending quality time making memories with the grandkids.What you probably didn't picture was having to...
How might my divorce affect my children?
While divorced parents may be struggling to cope with the aftereffects of a divorce, it is often the children that take the biggest hit when their parents split. It can take children awhile to learn how to cope with transitioning from one parent's home to the...