Situations where parents cannot co-parent allow for one party to make the ultimate decisions in the child’s best interest.
Divorces involving minor children tend to be more complicated than other divorce scenarios. In addition to addressing economic issues, the spouses have to work out, either by agreement or by litigation, arrangements for sharing their parental rights and responsibilities. Paternity cases, where unmarried parties have children together, present similar challenges for the parents who must either agree or litigate custody and parenting time issues.
Most of the time, the best outcome for children maintains or promotes a bond with both parents. This bond can be maintained after a divorce through joint custody situations. Joint legal custody allows both parents to equally share in making decisions related to the children’s educational needs, religious upbringing and/or medical care. Also, joint physical custody, with the children spending equal time with each parent can promote and support close relationships between parent and child.
While a presumption exists that both parents’ involvement in their children’s lives (and a Constitutional protection of familial rights) is in the child’s best interest, that presumption can be rebutted. Consequently, there are scenarios in which one parent secures sole legal or primary physical custody. So the question is: What are the most common situations that result in one parent obtaining sole legal and/or primary physical custody during or at the conclusion of a divorce?
Under Indiana Law, while there are statutory factors for married and unmarried couples with children together that guide the Court’s decisions, the Court must ultimately focus on the child’s best interests. The parent requesting sole custody usually needs sufficient and compelling evidence affirming that the other parent should not, for a variety of reasons, share in legal custody or physical custody. An even higher standard must be shown for a Court to order supervised or restricted parenting time.
Situations that may lead to a parent having sole legal and/or primary physical custody often involve a parent’s unfitness, including drug or alcohol abuse or even domestic violence. Also, a parent neglecting their own mental health condition may not be capable of making legal decisions in concert with the other parent in the children’s best interests. Another circumstance that could lead to a parent holding sole legal custody is when the parents have fundamental disagreements on the children’s upbringing or selfishly and immaturely engage in unproductive high-conflict behaviors. Bottom line: Courts focus on the child’s welfare being best served; not the desires of the parents.
Many sole legal custody or primary physical orders are not actually the result of contested litigation. Instead, parents often settle custody matters through mediation and settlement agreements otherwise. Even if not initially understood or recognized by a parent, through the process of custody proceedings, he/she may come to realize that an agreement for the other parent to have sole legal and/or primary physical custody will serve the children’s best interest. Identifying the facts and circumstances that support either sole or shared custody arrangements is critically important, but also difficult to handle. Smith Legal LLC is very experienced with custody cases, whether in divorce, paternity or adoption.