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After navigating the challenges of a child custody or divorce case, the last thing you want is a final visitation order that doesn’t accurately reflect what you agreed upon in mediation or, worse, is entirely incorrect. In yesterday’s and today’s blog posts, the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC, highlights critical aspects of a final order that people often overlook but can significantly impact your case in the long run. The details matter, and if you don’t pay attention to them, all the hard work you put into your case could yield little benefit.
Stepfamilies and their effect on your final orders
Blended families are prevalent in our country today. This should come as no surprise, seeing how such a relatively high percentage of marriages end in divorce. As such, if you are bringing your child into a blended household, there will need to be methods that your family uses to blend the people in your family and blend your habits and rules of living under one roof. What works for one family may not work for another.
If you have remarried after divorce, it is up to you and your spouse to work on skills that can help teach your children to work together and respect one another. If you all are not “talkers,” I would recommend that this be a skill that you work on tirelessly. Open communication is essential to making a blended family a cohesive unit, not just a bunch of individuals who call themselves a family.
Pay close attention to how your child reacts to life after your family law case concludes. Your child may reach out to you, but you may be too busy or concerned with other aspects of your family to notice.
Talk to your children about the new living situation and listen to what they have to say. A child feels powerless when thrust into a situation they did not ask to be part of. Address any issues raised and listen to your child’s thoughts and needs.
Who Has the Authority to Approve Medical Treatment for Your Child?
In terms of the rights and duties of your child, there may be no more important right than the one that allows you to consent to medical treatment, including invasive procedures. Depending on your order, you may have the exclusive right to do so, you may share that right jointly, or you may have an independent right to make these sorts of decisions along with your child’s other parent.
If your child were injured in an accident and required emergency surgery, you would likely not need to consult your child’s other parent for consent. You should check your order to make sure of this, but including an order like this in your final orders would be cumbersome and could potentially harm your child if that emergency procedure was essential for their healthy being.
The Religious Choice for Families
Most family law orders grant you the right to direct your child’s moral and religious training independently of the other parent when your child is with you. That means that if you and your child’s other parent are not a part of the same religion, then both of you can choose to have your child attend worship services with you during your periods of possession.
Depending on your child’s age, they should be allowed to explore both faith traditions that they have been exposed to. Attempting to influence your child to have them accept your faith as being correct is dangerous and could work against you in the long run. Answer questions and do your best to expose your child to the religious traditions that are important to you. Just as with any relationship you have, be sure to listen to your child’s thoughts whenever they want to make them known to you.
How to Handle Electronic Communication
With technology available to more and more people, final-order language now reflects this proliferation of technology. You can likely communicate using electronic means with your child when they are with the other parent. Negotiate for a particular day of the week, a time length for the communication, and other details to ensure that communication attempts utilizing technology are effective.
Do not view this as a way for your child’s other parent to steal time away from you.
The communication orders apply to both you and the other parent, so you must extend the same courtesy to the other parent while your child is not in your home. Ensure that your order includes language allowing electronic communication to be fair and to allow your child to have a relationship with both parents.
Special Considerations for Parents Who Were Never Married
If you never married your child’s other parent, you need to consider special factors during your child custody case. The law does not automatically establish a father’s parental rights if the father and mother did not marry at the time of the child’s birth. You need to acknowledge the child’s paternity to obtain the rights and duties of a father.
Secondly, the court cannot order child support unless it determines that you are the biological father of the child. In these situations, a judge will likely allow you to have limited visitation with your child as you begin to build a relationship. Once you develop your parenting skills further, you will have unsupervised and expanded periods of possession like most fathers.
Dating After a Family Law Case
Clients often ask me if there is anything they can do to prevent their ex-spouse from dating for a certain period after a divorce.
I tell them that the answer is no unless the new significant other poses a risk of harm to the child. One client informed me on the day of a temporary order hearing that she had a new boyfriend who is a registered sex offender.
You can imagine my shock at learning this. The opposing party was aware of this fact, resulting in our client being awarded only supervised visitation with her child, who had primarily been living with her until that point.
Some final orders bar having an unrelated adult in the home for overnight purposes, but this will typically only extend to the parties during a family law case.
In conclusion, ensuring that your visitation order accurately reflects the terms agreed upon in mediation is essential for a successful and lasting resolution in your child custody or divorce case. By paying close attention to the details of your final order, you can avoid potential issues that may arise in the future. Taking the time to carefully review and address any overlooked areas will help safeguard your interests and ensure that your hard work throughout the process truly pays off in the long term.
Advocating for you at all stages of your family law case- the Law Office of Bryan Fagan.
The experienced attorneys with the Law Office of Bryan Fagan, PLLC, know that just because your case has settled in mediation, that does not mean our job as your attorneys is done. We will work to ensure that your final orders reflect the terms agreed to in mediation so that there are no unpleasant surprises for you down the line.
If you have any questions for one of our licensed family law attorneys, please do not hesitate to contact our office today. We offer free-of-charge consultations six days per week.
Other Related Articles
- The Dirty Trick of the Unenforceable Visitation Order
- Geographic Restrictions in Child Visitation Orders in Texas
- Modifying Visitation Orders in Texas
- Family Law Cases in Texas: Enforcing Visitation and Property Orders
- Texas Parental Visitation – Texas Standard Possession Orders in Harris and Montgomery County, Texas – Part 1
- Creating a Workable Child Visitation and Possession Order in Texas
- What Happens If a Custodial Parent Violates a Visitation Court Order In Texas?
- Understanding Child Visitation and Standard Possession Orders in Texas: A Detailed Guide by the Law Office of Bryan Fagan
- What Is a Standard Possession Order and How Does It Impact the Visitation I Have With My Kids?
- Does my 18 year old child still have to go with their other parent on the weekend for court ordered visitation in Texas?
