Child Custody

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Representation for Child Custody Matters

Divorce is always painful, especially when children are involved. After all, your children’s lives will be changed forever, which can be hard for some kids to cope with. At Sarnacki Law Firm, a top-notch divorce law firm in Grand Rapids, you can expect effective advocacy in your child custody case. We partner with you in helping you do what is in your child’s best interest. Contact us today!

If you are in the midst of a divorce, most likely you are stressed, anxious, and maybe even a little depressed. Going through a divorce is an emotional rollercoaster for many and is never easy. When you have children involved, a divorce is even more complicated and difficult. So many questions are swirling in your head, especially in relation to how much time you’ll get with your child. Read on to learn more about child custody and parenting time (formerly known as visitation).

With so much at stake in your divorce, you need a child custody lawyer you can depend on to fight for not only your rights but also your child's. Sarnacki Law Firm in Grand Rapids can help. We represent you and your interests as they pertain to your child. Contact us today for all your child custody, child support, and parenting time needs!

Experience. You want a child custody attorney who has experience in child custody cases. Do your own research on child custody lawyers online. Read reviews, visit their websites, and read their credentials. See how long they have been practicing divorce and family law, and read any testimonials available. If you're wondering who an attorney or judge would recommend, consider consulting the Best Lawyers in America and Super Lawyers, which are based on the confidential survey of local attorneys and judges.
Effective advocate. You want a child custody lawyer who has your back in everything. Your child custody attorney should be able to effectively negotiate with opposing lawyers and counselors in order to advocate for you and your child’s needs. In essence, your child custody lawyer will fight for you.
Knowledge of the law. This is important for all lawyers; however, for a child custody and child support attorney, knowledge of the vast amount of law surrounding child custody will be crucial for your success. Child custody cases can be tricky since so much is at stake and every case is different. It will be crucial for your child custody attorney to not only understand what is in your child’s best interest, but also how to frame that in legal terms, meaning how to articulate your child’s desires with the law.

In most cases, both parents share legal custody and therefore consult on major decisions affecting the minor children. The parents may share physical custody or one parent may have the label of primary physical custodian. However, if the parties cannot agree on custody, a skilled attorney can ensure that a parent’s rights are protected by investigating, preparing, and presenting relevant facts to the court concerning the best interests of the children.

Custody is determined in accordance with the concepts of “established custodial environment” and “best interests of the child.” Important considerations include who has been the primary caregiver to the child, who will promote the child’s relationship with the other parent, who will provide a safe and secure environment for the child, and with whom a more mature child may prefer to live.

A parent who desires custody should be prepared to give specific facts showing (1) what the environment for the child has been, and (2) that at least some of the following factors favor that parent:

(a) The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parties involved and the child

(b) The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to give the child love, affection, and guidance and continuation of the educating and raising of the child in its religion or creed, if any.

(c) The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to provide the child with food, clothing, medical care or other remedial care recognized and permitted under the laws of this state in place of medical care, and other marital needs.

(d) The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment, and the desirability of maintaining continuity.

(e) The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home or homes.

(f) The moral fitness of the parties involved.

(g) The mental and physical health of the parties involved.

(h) The home, school, and community record of the child.

(i) The reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of sufficient age to express preference.

(j) The willingness and ability of each of the parties to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent or the child and the parents. A court may not consider negatively for the purposes of this factor any reasonable action taken by a parent to protect a child or that parent from sexual assault or domestic violence by the child’s other parent.

(k) The presence of domestic violence, regardless of whether the violence was directed against or witnessed by the child.

(l) Any other factor considered by the court to be relevant to a particular child custody dispute.

The court also considers whether the parents will be able to cooperate and generally agree on important decisions affecting the welfare of the child. If the parents agree on joint custody, the court will award it unless the court determines on the record, based upon clear and convincing reasons, that joint custody would not be in the best interest of the child.

During the time the child resides with a parent, that parent will decide all routine matters concerning the child. An agreement by the parties or the judge’s decision may be modified at any time based on significant changes affecting the best interests of the minor children.

Most proposed relocations of a child’s residence outside of the state of Michigan must be approved by a court. The court will approve a move when both parties consent to it or when the move satisfies a test focused on the reason for the move, the advantages to the child from the move, and the adequacy of alternative parenting time for the other parent. For moves exceeding 100 miles within the state of Michigan, a slightly different test is used with much the same focus. If you believe a move is relevant and important to your case, you should bring that to your divorce lawyer’s attention as soon as possible.

For more information on child custody law in Maryland, consult the Michigan Custody Guideline or contact our divorce and family law firm today.

(a) The existence of any special circumstances or needs of the child.

(b) Whether the child is a nursing child less than six months of age, or less than one year of age if they receive substantial nutrition through nursing.

(c) The likelihood of abuse or neglect of the child during parenting time.

(d) The likelihood of abuse of a parent resulting from the exercise of parenting time.

(e) The inconvenience to the child of traveling to and from parenting time.

(f) Whether a parent can reasonably be expected to obey court orders.

(g) Whether the parent has failed in the past to exercise reasonable parenting time.

(h) The threatened or actual detention of the child with the intent to retain or conceal them from the other parent. A custodial parent’s temporary residence with the child in a domestic violence shelter does not apply.

(i) Any other relevant factors.

If a child will be placed in danger by parenting time, the judge may deny, restrict or impose supervision as a condition to parenting time. Again, any orders may be modified based on change of circumstances.

Supervised Parenting Time

In certain cases, concern for the safety or wellbeing of the child(ren) may require supervised parenting time. This is only implemented when other, less restrictive methods are inappropriate. There are three generally accepted types of supervised parenting time:

Agency parenting time: In instances of child abuse, substance abuse, and/or domestic abuse, it may be necessary for supervised parenting time to occur in an agency setting. Examples of agencies that may provide this service include family and children's services offices, counseling centers, rehabilitation centers, and other treatment facilities. During agency parenting time, several guidelines are enforced. These include:

Physical contact between the child and parent must be initiated by the child, unless otherwise approved by the agency.
Whispering and not passing are forbidden.
The parent must not initiate discussion with the child concerning any alleged abuse or use manipulative tactics to extract information from the child(ren).
The parent must not discuss adult problems, such as court proceedings or parental disagreements, in front of the child.
Parents wishing to give gifts must discuss this with the supervisor in advance.

The language used during supervised parenting time must be a language in which the supervisor is fluent.
There should be no derogatory comments or discussion of the other parent.
There should be discussion of future living arrangements or changes in parenting time, unless determined appropriate in advance by the agency.
The child shall not be used to send any messages to the other parent.
All directives from the supervisor and agency staff must be followed.
All parenting time must occur only in designated areas.
A parent cannot appear at the agency under the influence of drugs or alcohol.

Third party supervision: For circumstances in which supervision is recommended, yet monitoring is not warranted, the court may grant third party supervision. Third party supervised parenting time is parenting time supervised by a friend, relative, or other individual selected by the court.
Examples of circumstances where third party supervision may be appropriate include situations in which adequate living conditions are not available to the parent or when the parent has a recent history of substance abuse. Third party supervision may also be appropriate in instances of reacquainting a child with a parent.

Third party supervision should only occur in instances when accompanied by a plan for full restoration of unsupervised visitation within a specified period of time or under specified conditions. The third party must be chosen by mutual agreement between the custodial and non-custodial parent, and the third party must consent to supervise the parenting time. Third party supervision may be minimal, such as a requirement that the supervision take place only at a designated location (the home of one of the child’s grandparents, for instance), or it may be more extensive, such as a requirement that it occur in the immediate presence of the supervisor.

Therapeutic parenting time: Therapeutic parenting time is the process of attaining an achievable parenting time goal through therapy. Examples include instances where a child has not had contact with a parent for an extended period of time, either voluntarily (for example, if the parent did not know of the child’s existence) or involuntarily (incarceration or institutionalization).

In addition to ensuring the protection of the child, the aim of supervised parenting time is to move towards a plan of unsupervised parenting time. To achieve this, certain objectives should be established. This may include certain milestones, such as a parent passing a certain number of drug tests, or it could include time intervals where the plan is reassessed.

Common issues related to parenting time include:

Clothing - Each parent should provide adequate clothing, though seasonal or specialty items can be transported back and forth (and returned in good, clean condition).
Transportation - The parent exercising the time should provide transportation unless otherwise agreed or ordered by the court.
Arguments - Parenting time exchanges should not be spoiled with discussions of adult issues (e.g., child support, bills, parenting time problems) or any disrespectful behavior.
Medical Needs - Parents should exchange all medications, medical instructions, and other information that protects the care and well-being of the child.
Denying Parenting Time - Time should be encouraged and facilitated by both parents and should not be denied on the basis of minor illness, “other plans,” or reasons unilaterally established by the parent or child.
Extracurricular Activities - Parents should make every effort to cooperate and not schedule activities that interfere with the parenting time.

Parents should help prepare their child emotionally for parenting time. Parenting time should not be denied in instances of minor illnesses, bad weather, or a child refusing to go. If a child will be placed in danger by parenting time, the judge may deny, restrict or impose supervision as a condition to parenting time. Again, any orders may be modified based on change of circumstances.

In certain circumstances, special considerations may be necessary. These include long distance parenting time, or exchanges that occur between parties who are over 180 miles apart, institutionalized or incarcerated parents, parents with certain medical issues, and third party placement.

Grandparent Custody and Visitation

Michigan law does not grant grandparents as many rights to custody or some other states. However, grandparents may be able to challenge this in court. In order to do so, the grandparents must provide evidence that neither parent is fit to take care of the child, and that parental custody would endanger the physical, mental, and/or emotional health of the child.

Grandparents in Michigan have the right to seek visitation under certain circumstances. These include:

The grandparent(s) has been the child’s caregiver within the previous year.
The child’s parents do not live together, and the child was born out of wedlock. The person claiming to be the father must have been declared as the legal father, and must be paying child support.
The parents of the child intend to or already have separated or divorced.
Someone other than the parents has legal custody of the child, except in cases where a step-parent has adopted the child.

If you are a grandparent in the Michigan area who is seeking to petition for child custody or child visitation, contact our divorce and family law firm in Grand Rapids today. We will be happy to schedule a consultation to discuss your circumstances and desired outcome.

Top-Rated Child Custody Law Firm in Grand Rapids

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Representation for Child Custody Matters

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WHAT TO LOOK FOR IN A CHILD CUSTODY LAWYER

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