How Does Supervised Visitation Work?

Supervised visitation is an arrangement in which the visiting, noncustodial parent is only permitted to visit his or her children while being supervised by a third party, such as a social worker. The visit might occur at the parent’s home or in a designated location, such as a child care center.

Judges will usually order supervised visitation if there is any question over the visiting parent’s fitness to be a parent. Common scenarios that prompt this include a parent having a history of substance abuse, or if there were allegations of any kind of abuse.

What to expect out of supervised visits

Supervised visitation could be a temporary or permanent arrangement. The more serious the allegations that lead to an order of supervised visitation, the more likely it is the arrangement will be permanent.

If the arrangement is temporary, the visiting parent can petition the court to change the order. For such a petition to be successful, the court will want to see some sort of significant change in circumstances, such as the visiting parent’s completion of counseling or substance rehabilitation, or any types of changes that will make the parent more suitable in the eyes of the court. The parent petitioning to change the order must come in person to a court hearing to argue on his or her behalf and demonstrate his or her fitness.

Ultimately, supervised visitation is meant primarily to protect children. Therefore, if you are a parent who has been prescribed supervised visitation, the onus is on you to be on your best behavior and show the court you can be trusted so you can remove some of the restrictions on your visitation.

If you want to learn more about supervised visitation, consult a knowledgeable Long Island child custody attorney with Bryan L. Salamone & Associates.