Child Joint Custody

Negotiating Child Custody-Why There Should Be Only 1 Winner

Terry — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 11:38:05 +0000

Negotiating child custody is an important part of the child custody process and the aftermath of the breakdown of the relationship with the other parent.

It is critical to understand that negotiating child custody is not like other negotiations you may have carried out before, for example when you were buying a house or car.

Child custody negotiations

Child custody negotiation must have at the forefront the interests of the child. No matter how you feel now about the other parent or how they feel about you negotiating child custody must always bear the interests of the child in mind.

Because if you don’t, the courts are mandated and obliged by law to grant custody with the primary consideration being the best interests of the child. In other words, no matter what agreement you may come to with the other parent after some tough negotiations, this agreement can always be overturned by the court.

For this reason any agreement you come to must be a reasonable one and one that has the best interests of the child as the primary factor.

Child Custody Attorneys

Child custody attorneys who are experienced in their field recognize the factors outlined above and recognize that adversarial and bitter child custody negotiations only succeed in driving up legal costs for both sides and runs the risk of being overturned by the court eventually if called upon to do so. Keep in mind that there is a presumption in most states in the U.S. of maintaining the status quo though so if your dispute ends up before the court and you are looking for a change or modification then you will have a hard time rebutting this presumption.

For this reason you need a good child custody attorney at the outset who is smart enough and experienced enough to recognize the benefits of negotiating an agreement at the outset that is best for both parents and child and which will keep legal costs down and stand up to the scrutiny of the family law court if it is ever examined by a family law judge.

Negotiating child custody therefore should not be carried out in an adversarial and confrontational fashion with a view to getting one up on the other side-it should be done with a view to getting an agreed outcome with only one winner-your child.

Child Custody Laws For Arizona

Terry — Mon, 23 Aug 2010 09:13:07 +0000

The child custody laws for Arizona are set down by Chapter 4 of the Title 25 of the Arizona revised statutes.

Many of the child custody laws for Arizona are similar to other states but below you will find the key points of the Arizona child custody laws.

25-403 sets out the basis on which the court will determine who gets custody of the child and this is based on the best interests of the child. The best interests of the child are judged by the following criteria

The wishes of the child’s parent or parents as to custody.
The wishes of the child as to the custodian.
The interaction and interrelationship of the child with the child’s parent or parents, the child’s siblings and any other person who may significantly affect the child’s best interest.
The child’s adjustment to home, school and community.
The mental and physical health of all individuals involved.
Which parent is more likely to allow the child frequent and meaningful continuing contact with the other parent. This paragraph does not apply if the court determines that a parent is acting in good faith to protect the child from witnessing an act of domestic violence or being a victim of domestic violence or child abuse.
Whether one parent, both parents or neither parent has provided primary care of the child.
The nature and extent of coercion or duress used by a parent in obtaining an agreement regarding custody.

Sole or Joint Custody in Arizona

The Arizona child custody laws recognize sole or joint custody and does not have a presumption in favor of one parent over the other so the father has an equal chance. In deciding on the question of joint custody will again be based on the best interests of the child and will be most common in circumstances where there is no agreement as to custody arrangements between parents. The court can also order a joint custody arrangement where the parents agree and submit a written parenting plan.

Parenting Plans

The court will look for an agreed parenting plan if it is to award joint custody and this plan will have to address each parents rights and duties, a procedure for any disputes that may subsequently arise and a plan for the child’s living arrangements on a day to day basis. It is important to note that joint custody does not mean equal parenting time.

Chapter 4 of Title 25 of the Child Custody laws for Arizona goes on to make provisions for the following matters:

Domestic violence and child abuse
Drug offenses
Other criminal convictions and any risk to the child and the need for notification
How to identify the primary care giver
Access to records
Rights of the non custodial parent
Visitation rights of grandparents
Custody hearings and the cost thereof
Modification of custody orders
Child support and many other matters.

All of the child custody laws for Arizona are freely available on the website of the Arizona state at www.azleg.gov website. Most states have their laws concerning child custody and child support available on the net and they are not nearly as incomprehensible or difficult to read as you might have imagined.

California Child Support

Terry — Sun, 22 Aug 2010 20:46:24 +0000

California child support is administered by the Department of Child Support Services which in turn comes under the California Health and Human Services Agency.

California child support is calculated based on the California child support guidelines laid down by the legislature in California. You can access a California child support calculator on the website of the Department of Child Support Services but the calculation of child support will be based on the net disposable income of each parent and the amount of time each parent cares for the child.

California Child Support Calculator

Ultimately the Family Law Judge or Court Commissioner will have the ultimate say as to what each parent’s child support obligations will be and the calculator can only provide a rough estimate. You can check out the California child support calculator booklet elsewhere on this site and it will guide you through the use of the calculator.

Under the umbrella of the Department of Child Support services in California are 52 local child support agencies and they provide the following free services to the public-

Establishing paternity
Finding a parent
Obtaining or modifying a child support order
Obtaining and enforcing a cour order for health insurance coverage.

To access any of these child support services you simply fill out a form online and contact your local child support agency office. You can also apply in person at the office.

You can also make or receive child support payments online and report fraud and obtain public records which is provided or under the Constitution of California and the Public Records Act. You must make your request in writing for a specific public record and not attempt to do a trawl of the records. The Office of Legal Services provide this service and you can generally get your copy of the record within 10 days and there is a copying charge of 10 cents per page.

You can apply online for the various California child support services in a number of languages including English, Vietnamese, Spanish, Armenian, Chinese, Russian and Hmong.

California Child Support Handbooks

The website of the Department of Child Support also provide a number of really useful child support handbooks which you can download for free including

Information for the non custodial parent
Obtaining a child support order
Commencing a child support case and many others which are very informative and written in plain English (but also translated to all the other languages mentioned above).

If you are concerned about California child support there is no excuse for informing yourself with the many free resources on the website provided by the Department of Child Support in California.

Texas Child Support Calculator | Calculator Child Support Texas

Terry — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 08:19:01 +0000

A Texas child support calculator is not supplied by the courts service in Texas on their website which is unusual because most states provide free child support calculators.

However you can access a Texas child support calculator at the end of this post which is a pdf document which will help you calculate your child support obligations in Texas. This calculator is base on the Texas Family Code, section 154.129 and involves just filling in the form online and saving it or printing it out.

Calculator Child Support Texas

Essentially the Texas child support calculator involves filling out your income, deducting social security and income taxes together with union dues and health care and this will give you a figure for net income. It is on this net income figure that child support obligations are calculated and further significant factors include how many children you need to support with a % figure being applied depending on how many children.

For example if you only have one child to support you must pay 20% of your net income, two children and you must pay 25% and so on. For a closer look, check out the Texas child support calculator pdf document at the end of this post.

The basis of the child support calculation is based on the needs of the child/children, their age and the ability of the non custodial parent to pay, the earning capacity of the parent and the parent’s other support responsibilities. Ultimately the figure for child support will be determined by the net income of each parent and there is a presumption in law that the state guidelines are correct and lawful and if you feel that the calculation is incorrect or harsh you must prove your case and prove how the family law court has erred in law.

Child Support Enforcement In Texas

Child support enforcement in Texas is the responsibility of the Child Support Division of the Office of the Attorney General. This office is responsible for the enforcement of child support orders, establishing paternity, locating missing parents, enforcing medical adjustment orders, collecting and distributing child support payments.

It is important to recognize that the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act ensures the collection of child support across state borders and this allows you to register child support orders in different states for the purposes of having your child support order enforced.

Download a Texas child support calculator here.

Free California Child Support Calculator

Terry — Mon, 02 Aug 2010 07:12:50 +0000

If you are looking for a free California child support calculator then you have come to the right place-because you can access a free child support calculator for California clicking the link at the end of this post.

But before you do that you should download the helpful explanatory booklet for using the California child support calculator which you can download here.

Free Child Support Calculator For California

In California, as in all other states in the United States, you will find the state will have drawn up child support guidelines which the court must have regard to in deciding on the final amount of child support to be paid by parents. The free California child support calculator is set up to work within these guidelines. Essentially child support is calculated on the basis of the net disposable income of each parent and the amount of time each parent spends with the child in a custodial situation.

Net disposable income will be calculated by taking ALL income of the parent and allow deductions for union dues, taxes, health premiums, any other child or spousal support being paid and costs associated with children from any other relationships.

When using the free California child support calculator you may find you get different results from your partner or if your attorney does the calculation; this is because the calculator is pretty comprehensive and results will vary depending on exemptions claimed by each parent, whether retirement contributions are mandatory or not and other slight variations which will result in slightly different results.

Ultimately the decision for the final child support order amount will be down to the family law court but you should find the free child support calculator for California helpful in providing a good estimate for you. Furthermore if you work your way through the calculator with the help of the explanatory booklet you will discover a lot of useful information about definitions and how child support is calculated ultimately. This can be very useful for understanding how the family law court will ultimately decide your case and what guidelines it must use in arriving at it’s decision.

Click this link for the free California child support calculator.

Click this link for the free explanatory child support calculator booklet for using the calculator.

Estimate Child Support | Child Support Calculators

Terry — Sun, 01 Aug 2010 08:00:51 +0000

To estimate your child support obligations you will need to firstly understand that child support obligations will vary from state to state in the United States as each state has Federal Government regulations decree that each state must draw up it’s own guidelines for the implementation of child support laws in that state.

The Federal IV-D Regulations ensure that there is a broad degree of uniformity across states in this regard but the method for implementation of these regulations are left up to each individual state as to how much must be paid by the parent.

Each state will have published their own Child Support Guideline which sets out in greater detail how your child support payments are to be calculated and there is a presumption in law that the Guideline is correct. It must be reviewed every 4 years and there is a huge amount of information provided free by each state on it’s courts website in the family law section to help you estimate child support and each state also provides child support calculators online to help you estimate what your payments will be.

So to estimate child support in Florida or get a good Texas child support estimate or to estimate child support in Tennessee, you really need to visit the website which deals with family law in your state.

The guideline established by each state will give you a good idea because notwithstanding the fact that ultimately a judge will have the ultimate say as to the child support payments to be made in his/her order, he/she will be expected to not stray too far from the guideline laid down by that state’s laws. In Florida for example if the judge makes an order which diverges from the child support guidelines in Florida by more than 5% he/she will have to give a written explanation as to why he/she deems this to be fair.

Ultimately each state will look at the needs of the children, the financial standing and status of both parents and their ability to pay. If you are not happy with your existing child support obligations and want to change you can apply to court for a child support modification order but you will need to show a change of circumstances from the time of making the existing order. This is something that you really need to discuss with your attorney to ensure that there is some reality to your application for modification and to ensure that you are not wasting your money on legal bills which could be better used on your children’s needs.

How Is Child Support Calculated In Texas?

Terry — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 22:09:50 +0000

How is child support calculated in Texas is a common question for parents whose relationship has ended and there is a child or children involved.

In Texas, as in many states, the non custodial parent will have a child support obligation until the child is 18 or ends high school, whichever is the later.

Generally child support in Texas is calculated on the basis of the net income of the non custodial parent. The percentage payable will depend on the number of dependent children of that parent. Net income is calculated as follows:

Any and all income including salary, investment income, rental income-it essentially covers all income with the exception of any income received from a new spouse, and benefits received for families in difficulty and of course does not include capital sums received.

From this income figure is calculated the following in order to arrive at a figure for net income:

Taxes including social security and federal and state taxes, union dues and health insurance expenses.

Calculating Child Support In Texas

In Texas if your monthly net income is less than $6,000 then your child support payments will be calculated based on the number of children you are obliged to support.

If there is 5 children then you must pay 40% of your net income, 4 children and you pay 35%, 3 dependent children and you must pay 30%, 2 children will lead to payments of 25% and for one child you must pay 20% of your net income.

This formula goes out the window if custody, physical custody that is, is split between parents or if there are unusual arrangements with multiple children. Furthermore if a court thinks that you are intentionally dragging your heels in terms of your income and are not working to your potential in order to keep you child support payments down then the court can make a child support order based on your earning potential rather than what you are actually making.

So if you went back to college with a subsequent fall in your income a judge may well decide to make a child support order based on what you would have earned if you did not make that choice.

Child Support Calculator | Child Support Payment Calculator

Terry — Sat, 31 Jul 2010 21:23:13 +0000

A child support calculator is used to calculate your child support obligations but unfortunately each state in the United States uses a different child support calculator so there is no one child support payment calculator that you can use-it will really depend on the state that you are in.

However the good news is that practically every state provides a child support calculator on the internet on a website which deals with all matters to do with the courts of that state. For example California bases their child support obligations on a guideline which considers the following-

The income of both parents
And other income aside from salary such as rental or investments
How many children the parents have together
The tax filing status of each parent
How much time they spend with the children
Union dues payable
Health expenses incurred
Retirement contributions
And uninsured health care costs
Day care costs
And many other factors.

Child Support Calculators

It is important to note that all of the child support calculators that you will access on the various court websites of each state will only provide you with an estimate of your likely child support payments. Ultimately it will be a matter for the Family law judge to decide on the final child support amount payable and he/she will make a court order to this effect which is legally binding. This order can subsequently be amended if circumstances of either or both parents change.

Child support orders can be obtained in family law court when you get an annulment, divorce or legal separation or when you establish parentage or if you are forced to get a domestic violence restraining order. Generally child support calculators are set up on the basis that the child or children live with one parent and will not provide for situations of joint physical custody where parents share the custody of the child.

So treat these child support calculators with caution as they will only provide you with a guideline and custody orders can always be modified by the court in your state should circumstances change and the need arises. You can check out a guide to using a child support calculator by clicking on the link below which allows you to download the guide booklet for the California child support calculator and it explains how to use the child support calculator properly in California. Each state that provides a child support payment calculator will also provide a helpful guide similar to this one which will guide you through using the child support calculator for your state.Download your California child support payment calculator explanatory booklet here.

Child Custody Agreement Forms

Terry — Sat, 24 Jul 2010 13:11:03 +0000

Child custody agreement forms cover a whole range of forms that you may need in the ongoing relationship you have with your child and the other parent.

There are many child custody forms that you may need from time to time including-

Forms to organize child visitation rights/arrangements
Forms to change an existing custody or visitation order
Forms seeking to change child support arrangements
Forms applying for a declaration under the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act
Proof of service of summons
Schedule of assets and liabilities
Forms for petition for custody and support of minor children
A request for hearing to set aside voluntary declaration of paternity
Child custody and visitation attachment

The legal system loves it’s forms and paperwork and it is important to have the right child custody agreement forms when applying for any of the various requests you might have to a court, whether in relation to custody, visitation, modifying orders already made or whatever purpose you need the form for.

Child Custody Agreement Forms State By State

It is important that you use the correct forms for your state and these forms will be available on the courts website of your state. A little searching around and you will find the forms you need for practically any situation.

It is important to be honest and truthful in filling out any custody forms that you need because not to do so can be quite serious and can be held to be contempt of court which is a criminal offense.

It is important also to try and have your forms checked either by the court office staff or a legal professional as you do not want to prejudice your application by failing to fill out the child custody form incorrectly or leave any hostages to fortune.

Child Custody Agreement Form

If you are looking for a standard child custody agreement form you would be well advised to steer clear of any cookie cutter approach as the circumstances of each family will be different and require a customized agreement for your particular circumstances. Any good custody lawyer will be able to draft such a custody agreement for you and some of the topics that will need to be dealt with include

The ongoing welfare of the child including child support and who has custody
Who has day to day care of the child and what is the role of the other parent in making “global decisions” regarding medical, educational and guardianship of the child
The assets/liabilities of each parent should be dealt with and the role any pensions of either parent will play in the agreement
Visitation rights and arrangements
Arrangements for holiday time and the child being taken out of the state and/or country.

Child Custody And Visitation Agreement

Set out below you will find a child custody and visitation agreement. You must look at this with a view to having a property child custody agreement drafted by a child custody attorney and have it adapted to your particular needs and circumstances. Treat this child custody agreement form as simply a starting point to allow you to think about some of the issues that you will need dealt with in your child custody agreement.

Child Custody and Visitation Agreement

________________________________________ (“Custodian”) shall have custody of ________________________________________ (“Child”), and control and supervision of _________ [his or her] upbringing, subject to the following:

1. ________________________________________ (“Non-Custodial Parent”) shall have the right to visit the Child once each week, on either of the following days, between the following hours, respectively: (A) on ______________ [day of the week] between _________________ [starting hour] and ______________ [ending hour] or ______________ [alternate starting hour] and ______________ [alternate ending hour]; or (B) on ______________ [day of the week] between _________________ [starting hour] and ______________ [ending hour] or ______________ [alternate starting hour] and ______________ [alternate ending hour].

It is agreed that the Non-Custodial Parent will notify the Custodian on or before ___________________________ [day of the week and time of day] whether the Non-Custodial Parent intends to visit the Child and on which of the designated days and times. If the day or hour selected is inconvenient, the Custodian will notify the Non-Custodial Parent no later than ___________________________ [day of the week and time of day], and the Non-Custodial Parent shall be permitted to visit the Child the alternate day or during the alternate hours.

2. Nothing contained in this agreement shall be construed as an obligation or a duty on the part of the Non-Custodial Parent to accept custody of the Child at the time or for the periods indicated. The intention of the parties is that the Non-Custodial Parent’s right of visitation shall be entirely optional to Non-Custodial Parent, and should the Non-Custodial Parent so desire, Non-Custodial Parent may waive the privilege of visitation on any occasion and for any reason, without waiving Non-Custodial Parent’s right to future visits.

3. _____ Not applicable, or _____ Due to the present immaturity of the Child, the Non-Custodial Parent shall not at the present time be entitled to take the Child away from the Custodian’s home for any period of time. However, if at a later date, when the Child becomes older, the Child personally expresses a wish or desire to accompany his/her Non-Custodial Parent and spend with that parent a period of time other than the periods set forth in this agreement, the Custodian will consent to such partial custody at that time and for such period.

4. The Custodian shall promptly notify the Non-Custodial Parent in the event of illness of the Child. The word “illness” shall be deemed to mean any illness, other than any illness from which the Child is now suffering, which shall confine the Child to bed for more than two days.

5. On all matters of importance relating to the Child’s health and education, the Custodian shall consult and confer with the Non-Custodial Parent, with a view to adopting and following a harmonious policy.

6. Neither party shall do anything which may estrange the Child from the other.
________________________________________ Date: ______________
Signature of Non-Custodial Parent

________________________________________
Non-Custodial Parent’s Printed or Typed Name

________________________________________ Date: ______________
Signature of Custodian

________________________________________
Custodian’s Printed or Typed Name

Joint Child Custody Forms | Free Printable Child Custody Forms

Terry — Tue, 20 Jul 2010 20:34:31 +0000

Joint child custody forms are commonly sought after by parents involved in a custody dispute.

Unfortunately many parents either can not afford to hire a child custody lawyer or choose for budgetary or other reasons to run their own case and file their own child custody forms. The first thing to note is that you should not be paying for any joint child custody forms that you wish to file because all the states of the United States will provide these forms for free and most of them can be obtained on the internet for instant download.

Free Printable Child Custody Forms

Each state will have slightly different child custody forms and it is obviously important that you are using the forms for your state. It is in the state’s interest to make child custody forms freely available to it’s citizens to keep down the costs of litigation for hard pressed parents and to make the law truly accessible to all.

If you go to the website of the Family courts and forms page of your state you will be able to access most or all of the child custody forms you might need and these forms will include-

Forms for modifying child custody
Visitation plans and child support worksheets
Custody complaint forms
Child support forms
Model parenting time plans
Custody and visitation forms
Allocation of parental responsibilities forms
Grandparent visitation
Forms for motion for temporary and/or access to your children
Forms for filing affidavits of financial resources
Guardianship forms
Visitation schedules
Forms for requesting, modifying or enforcing a visitation order
Forms for bringing motions to enforce visitation and/or parenting time
And many others.

So, whatever joint child custody forms, or indeed any forms you need in relation to your child custody litigation, you need there is no need to buy them online or anywhere else. A simple search on the internet for your state and the family law courts should ensure that you get what you need.

Do be careful though when filling out your child custody forms or affidavits because it will be very difficult for you to resile from the facts set out in your forms if and when your case comes to court. It is a good idea to always take legal advice if you can afford it-if you truly can not and are determined to file your own pleadings and forms you will find that the staff working in family law court offices will be very helpful in assisting you with filling out your forms.