In Utah, child custody is governed by the sections in the state’s divorce statutes, even if the parents aren’t currently married. However, it is possible for child custody to be brought as a separate case, depending on the nature of one’s case. So are you a concerned parent that needs help with getting custody of your child? Or are you and your spouse splitting up and want to have joint custody but don’t know how to go about what actions you need to take to achieve such matters? First, you will need to contact a Salt Lake City divorce attorney that will guide you every step of the way from strategy development to the resolution of your case.
Knowing How to Resolve Your Issues:
Having issues within a custody case are all too common. So you must be prepared to take the most effective steps in order to get the best results for your child.
Negotiation
- Discussion aimed at reaching an agreement
Child Custody Mediation
- Meet with mediator
- Both parties will identify and prioritize all contested issues
- All issues will be discussed to come to a mutually beneficial agreement
- A comprehensive draft will be distributed to each party
Litigation
- Process of taking legal action
Knowing the Types of Custody:
Most people when thinking about child custody only think about legal custody. Well, there are actually two parts, legal and physical. Physical custody means where the children live; legal custody means which parent has the right to make important decisions about the children.
Sole Legal and Physical custody
- Either parent can be awarded sole custody of the children. This means that the children live with one parent and that parent makes the major decisions about the children’s lives. If sole custody is awarded, the sole physical parent is awarded visitation or in other words parent time.
Modification
- This only happens if something changes significantly in the custody order
Joint Legal and Physical custody
- Joint legal custody means that both parents make decisions about key issues affecting the child by working together until the child turns 18, but it doesn’t affect the child’s residence. While joint physical custody means the child must live 111 nights within a year in the home of each parent. Overall, this is the best form of custody because both parents are able to make important decisions in the child’s life.
Child Support or Visitation
- As a single mother, you have the right to claim child support or if the father wants to be in his biological child’s life he can be awarded visitation.
So if you are a parent or struggling couple living in Utah and are in a situation that is unhealthy for your child, get yourself a Salt Lake City divorce attorney and take the necessary steps to advance yourself and most of all your child in the right direction.