Although most laws are designed to help divorced parents maintain a healthy relationship with their children, there are times when some issues may disqualify divorcees from having legal custody of their kids. Most of these cases involve allegations related to child abuse or neglect. However, some allegations could be false statements from a contentious former spouse. If you are dealing with a child custody matter is best you contact a Salt Lake City child custody attorney to discuss your legal options.
The process
The process generally starts with one of the parents notifying the court about his or her concern involving a former spouse or parent of the children. Evidence must be provided otherwise the allegations of abuse are not valid. If the judge determines the behavior is a threat to the child’s safety, an investigation will take place. An investigator may take a look at the circumstances surrounding the allegations and decide whether or not the allegations are true.
Child abuse
This is a common reason why some parents may lose custody of their children. The court will see if there is a history of child abuse. Some factors that help the judge determine if there was child abuse include scars, bruises, marks, and cuts. Whether it was initiated by anger or inappropriate behavior, child abuse will definitely cause the parents to lose custody of their children. If you suspect your former spouse has abused your child, notify the police and contact Salt Lake City child custody attorney Emy A. Cordano.
Domestic violence
There are cases that don’t involve child abuse yet if the child witnessed child abuse against the other parent during the last 5 years; the court may deny sole child custody. A history of abuse will be considered when making custody decisions. Granting custody to an abusive parent is not in the child’s best interest.
Drug and alcohol abuse
Courts will also take a look at other factors such as the use of controlled substances. The habitual use of drugs or alcohol by either parent is detrimental to the interests and safety of the kids, therefore, the parent addicted to these substances can’t be trusted with raising the children.
Violating a court order
Parents should respect custody orders. Doing otherwise may result in a parent losing custody. Although it’s all based on how the order was written, violating the order doesn’t help advance the case. Some cases involving joint custody, for example, require both parents to making important decisions about the child. If one of the parents fails to consult the other parent before making an important decision, the custody order could be modified and the parent may lose custody.
Parental alienation and co-parenting
When one of the parents is manipulative and he or she uses these tactics to alienate the children from his or her former spouse, there is a chance he or she will lose custody. Co-parenting is sometimes the best option in some scenarios as it allows parents that can’t get along to follow a strict joint custody schedule.