Under any circumstances, creating a parenting plan to address issues of legal and physical custody can be a complicated process. There is often sharp disagreement between parents as to what is the best interests of their son or daughter. When a child is on the autism spectrum, disagreements might even become more difficult to resolve. Children with autism often rely…
Most divorcing parents understand that arrangements will have to be made regarding where their children will spend the holidays going forward. However, completing a fair, comprehensive parenting time schedule is more complicated than saying that a son or daughter will spend Thanksgiving in one house and Christmas or Hanukkah in the other. Thoughtful discussion regarding holiday visitation and arrangements for…
Parents who are going through a divorce, or living under a custody order after their relationship has ended, must be cognizant of how their behavior might affect their parental rights. Even actions that a father or mother believes to be justified could have negative consequences when brought to the attention of a judge. This is particularly true in cases where…
When the parents and grandparents of children have serious conflicts with each other, it can be a heartbreaking situation for the family and a tricky legal matter. Parents, unless they are shown to be unable to carry out their responsibilities properly, have the legal authority to determine who spends time with their sons and daughters. On the other hand, New…
Family courts frequently struggle with the balance between a parent’s right to see their child and the need to make sure that the youth will be safe with a noncustodial father or mother who has engaged in risky behavior. Often, supervised visitation is viewed as a suitable compromise. In these situations, the judge appoints a neutral third party who must…
Forced closer together by lockdowns, travel restrictions, work-from-home orders and school closures during the pandemic, many married couples have seen their relationships strained to the point of breaking. This has led to a surge of divorces in New York and across the nation. But with the backlog of cases caused by COVID-related court closures, estranged spouses have learned that divorce…
Since 1996, we have been handling grandparent’s rights. Previously, grandparents did not have rights to visitation or time with their grandchildren except for in certain circumstances: If the parents of the child have passed away If the grandparent has an existing relationship with the child There must be no objection by the parents of the child I am very pleased…
It is understandable for there to be tension or bad blood between you and an ex-spouse, particularly when they bring a new romantic partner into the picture. If you do not like that new partner, you might wonder if you have any recourse to keep them away from your children while they are visiting your ex. In most cases, however,…
There are a variety of factors courts will look at when determining which spouse in a divorce will have primary physical custody of the couple’s children. Courts want to create an arrangement that’s in the best interests of the children—that means placing them in a home with parents who are capable of fulfilling all their needs and being loving, competent…
New York, as with all states, uses the “best interest” standard for determining child custody arrangements. This means parents can expect judges to consider a variety of factors that will go into determining what arrangement would be in the child’s best interest for the long term. Some examples of some of those factors include: Parental ability: Courts want to make…