In Virginia, when you file for child custody, you also often file for visitation and child support. These petitions go hand in hand for a number of reasons, but probably the biggest one is that, if you don’t ask for something, the court doesn’t have the power to award it. So many things in law...
Parenting Time v. Visitation
There are few things in a family law context that drive extreme emotion quite like adultery and child custody. When you combine the two, it’s a recipe for volatility. But … does it matter? It’s an excellent question and one definitely worth discussing. Let’s get into it. If your soon-to-be ex-husband (or ex boyfriend) cheated...
Coming up with a parenting plan isn’t just about how you’ll share the days in each week, though it is certainly about how you’ll share the days in the week. To make matters even more complicated, there are many other considerations that should be reflected in your parenting plan, and you’ll want to make sure...
If you’ve never been through it before, it’s hard to know what to ask for when it comes to custody and visitation. Probably you realize that your soon-to-be ex (husband, boyfriend, partner – whatever the label) will have at least some parenting time. But what will that look like? How can it be structured? What...
The best parenting plans are always the ones that include just enough details to provide parents with a framework for how to move together through the inevitable challenges that coparenting will bring. The best parenting plans don’t just deal with the here and now – though they do a good job with it, because the...
If you have a parenting plan or a court order that specifies custody and visitation, you’re supposed to follow it. And, probably, most of the time, you will. The ideal scenario is to come up with something that you both – you and your child’s father – can rely on, predict, and understand intuitively. I...
It doesn’t happen often, but every once in a while there’s a terrible storm – or the threat of a terrible storm. When you have a parenting plan or a custody order in place, you’re supposed to follow it. But does a storm create an exception? Let’s talk about it. Life is anything but predictable,...
Question: My child’s father and I share custody. Our child is involved in a number of activities and there are practices, games, recitals, meets, and more, all on a regular basis. I’ve always taken the child to everything, and I’ve never missed a game or performance, but now that we’re divorced, my child’s father is...