7. Best Interests Information
Child custody is decided based upon what the court decides is in the best interests of the child. What we want to do in this step is talk about what the court looks at when it makes a best interests determination and start thinking about evidence we need to gather, or what we can be actively doing to build your case.
So to start we need to review what the court looks at when it is deciding the best interests. There is a list of factors that the court and look at when making this decision:
Age/Sex. The age and sex of the child.
Wishes of Parents. The wishes of the child's parent or parents.
Childs Wishes. The wishes of the child, with more consideration given to the child's wishes if the child is at least fourteen (14) years of age.
interaction/Interrelationship. The interaction and interrelationship of the child with the child's parents, siblings and other people who affect the child's best interests.
Home/Community. The child's adjustment to the child's home, school, and community.
Health. The mental and physical health of all individuals involved.
Domestic Violence. Evidence of a pattern of domestic or family violence by either parent.
Guardian. Evidence that the child has been cared for by someone other than a parent for at least six months to a year, depending on the child's age.
The Court then wights these factors and determines what is in the best interests of the child as it relates to custody and parenting time.
Determine What Factors Apply in Your Case
So we recommend determining what factors apply to your case. When you look at the statute, some may be neutral, like the wishes of the parent, which is oftentimes competing because each parent wants opposite things. Some factors though could weigh in your favor, for example:
Maybe your child has grown up in your home and are familiar with the neighborhood and school system. Here the relationship to the home/community factor could weight in your favor.
Maybe you have other kids in your home and they are close with their step-siblings. Here the court may place more weight on the interaction/interrelationship factor.
Maybe your child is special needs needs and you have been their primary caregiver their whole life. Here the Court may place weight on the Health factor.
So you need to start with the statute and think about how this could apply to your case.
Highlight Relationship with Your Child
Outside of the statutory factors, there are also a couple more general items that apply to every case. For instance, you should highlight the relationship with your child. Show the court what life in your household is like. Walk them through a typical day. What do you do for breakfast? How do you get them ready for school? What do you do during your parenting time? How do you take them to school or get them on the bus and maybe you can show the court photographs showing how you engage with your child in different environments.
Show Participation in School Activities
If your kids are in school, show that you participate in their schooling. Show that you know their teachers, that you take an active part in their education. For instance, if they're struggling in a class, maybe you have a story about how you helped them get a better grade.
Show Co-Parenting Relationship
Show that you promote a good co-parenting relationship. This can be done through a lot of different ways For instance, you can use texts messages to show that you are trying to promote the parenting relationship - notifying of doctor appointments/school activities or asking when they are going to occur. Or maybe there has been a lot of conflict and you are the parent pushing the other to use a co-parenting application to get things back on track.
Plan to Address Weaknesses of your Case
The last big thing I recommended is to have a plan to address the weakness of your case. You have to put a case forward, but you also have to plan to address weaknesses of your case. So for instance, there may be allegations of drug use, domestic violence or maybe you guys guys just live far apart and it makes parenting time through the week difficult. You need to think about what those weaknesses are and what could be used against you and have a plan on how to address it.
Best Interests Questions
Please fill out the attached form so that we can gather some more details about your specific family situation.