If you have children together, your frayed relationship can make figuring out a parenting plan challenging. However, your odds of creating a workable agreement will improve by putting facts before feelings.
Staying in the driver’s seat
If you and your spouse have differing ideas of an ideal parenting plan, you may fear you will have to work yours out in court. Litigating your custody dispute gives you less control than your plan’s terms, which could lead to an unfavorable agreement for all.
While you two may be unable to create a plan on your own, you might be able to reach a resolution through mediation. A mediator cannot give you legal advice, but they can guide you and your spouse toward consensus.
Mediation could still be difficult if tensions run high between you and your spouse. But, it keeps your parenting plan out of the courtroom and focused on your family’s circumstances as you know them.
Minimizing contact
You and your spouse may both be qualified, devoted parents who want to spend ample time with your children. Whether you two will share custody or one of you receives visitation, you will have to communicate about your children and exchange them.
These occasions could be problematic if you and your spouse end up interacting. Yet, you can add provisions to your parenting plan addressing these concerns. In it, you will want to detail exactly where and when you will exchange your children, as well as how you will discuss any issues related to them. Accounting for these challenges can help you minimize contact with your spouse.
Focusing on your children
On occasion, people use custody proceedings as a chance to get back at their spouses. No matter your feelings toward yours, you will want to avoid using your children as pawns.
While you might dread the idea of co-parenting, custody battles can cause psychological harm to children. By putting your children’s best interests ahead of your own, you will provide them with the stability they need to thrive.
If your divorce is acrimonious, creating a parenting plan could be difficult without help. A legal professional can provide you guidance in reaching an agreement that puts your family before your feelings.