Does your custody order address the school year in enough detail?

Summer is coming to an end and, inevitably, you and your ex-spouse have had to work together to make the custody arrangements work throughout the summer.  The school year is now approaching; are you and you child's other parent on the same page with how things will work?  Talking through the details and making sure you have a clear understanding will help your child maintain stability and a sense of normalcy as the school year begins.  Here are a few things you may need to discuss and/or have the court address:

1.  Weekend visitation: What time does weekend visitation start and end?  Are the times you have used in the past still appropriate to allow the child enough time to prepare for the beginning of a new school week each week?  Have you discussed and is there an understanding about when the child will complete any homework he has over the weekend? 

2.  Sick days:  Have you and your child's other parent discussed what will happen if the child is sick?  Will the responsibility fall on the parent who has the child in his/her care and custody at the time or will one parent always take off to stay with the child? 

3.  School functions and reports:  Will you and your child's other parent attend school functions together?  Will you both go but attend separately or will you alternate school functions?  The same goes with parent-teacher conferences; who will attend and what role will each parent play?  Who will have primary access to report cards?  Did you list the other parent as a parent with the school so that he/she may have access to school records?

4.  Extracurricular activities:  What happens when your child decides he wants to join the soccer team and has games every Saturday morning?  Will the child attend his games regardless of which parent he is with or will one parent not allow the child to attend the games during his/her visitation time?  Who is going to pay for these activities?

Custody orders provide you and your child's other parent with a basic structure of how the child's life will look.  They do not, however, provide every detail and issue that you may encounter.  They also may lose their applicability as the child grows older and the circumstances change.  It's important, as early as possible, to develop a communication system with the other parent (whether it is by phone, in person meetings or emails) to figure out the details and make sure every understands the arrangements.  If you are unable to come to an understanding and agreement, it may be time to look back to the courts for additional help.

If you are involved in a custody or divorce dispute and would like a consultation, please contact us at (804) 447-0146 or clbaudean@baudeanlaw.com.