Nothing is easy about divorce. On top of the emotional challenges adults undergo personally, there’s the major issue that overrides it all: allocating custody of the children. In the end, parents’ top priority is making sure that the kids’ physical and emotional wellbeing remains as secure as possible, as agreed by the courts.
Ideally, both parents are on the same page when it comes to child custody matters. However, it’s not uncommon to have disagreements and disputes arise. Therefore, pieces of forceful facts and proofs are crucial materials for parents to Here we would like to shed some light on why it’s imperative that parents understand the process and know how to seek custody for their children.
Know your options
Getting legal child custody refers to a court order that delegates control and care over the child (or children). The two most common forms of child custody are 1) sole custody, and 2) joint custody.
Sole custody
In the case of sole custody after a divorce, one “custodial parent” is assigned legal responsibility for the child’s daily care and for making day-to-day decisions about the child’s upbringing—things like taking them to and from school, providing their meals, etc.
Sole custody may be assigned if it’s clear that the parents aren’t able to work together in a way that’s healthy for the child. It is possible to be obtained by showing how the other spouse is not fit to raise the child properly.
It’s important to note that, even in sole custody, the custodial parent can’t make major life decisions for the child without any involvement or agreement from the non-custodial parent such as moving out of the country, etc.
Joint custody
Usually, the court will favour a situation where both parents have equal roles in the decision-making that determines the child’s welfare and upbringing. This is observed as the best way to protect the child’s interests in the long term.
For shared custody, a high level of cooperation and communication is required between both parents to maximize life stability for the child or children. This includes deciding which home the child will reside in, predetermined visitation rights, time spent with each parent, etc.
Factors considered by the Court
When determining the type of child custody given, the court will always take the welfare of the child into primary consideration. Some of the factors the court will consider include (but are not limited to):
- How to best preserve the status quo
- The ages of the child/children and the parents
- The child’s / children’s wishes and views (if any)
- The parents’ financial statuses
- The parents’ characters, capabilities, personalities
- The accommodation that will be given to the child
- Keeping siblings together
Be prepared
When fighting for custody by going through court, being prepared as a parent is vital. This means doing your due diligence to gather all the required documentation and fact supporting details to show that you meet the requirements outlined above.
Proper preparation usually involves hiring qualified and experienced professionals that have you and your child’s best interest at heart. In order to provide you the most obtainable information for your success in the legal process of custody seeking, we are committed to offer professional surveillance services to reveal the concealed.
Addictions and Habits
Despite of the reasons, divorce, in most of the cases, is not a burden that could be overcome easily. Failure in relieving stress might result in substance abuse, i.e., drugs, alcohol and tobacco. Whether or not the Subject has convealled his addictions and bad habits, we would look for the hints during the surveillance on the Subject. Through keeping the Subject’s activities on track, we could understand what the Subject used to consume and where the Subject used to spent time in.
Mental State
Stability of mental health is equally essential to the parent and the child. The overwhelming stress of legal process may undermine one’s mental capability to take care of a child. During surveillance, the Subject’s mobility and mental state will be captured. Investigators will pay extra attention to the Subject’s facial expressions and gestures when the Subject is interacting with the others. You may also get a glimpse of the Subject’s relationship with the neighbourhood based on the surveillance result.
Financial and Living Conditions
Parenting means more than patience, but also winning the bread for the family. Some of them may fudge on their occupation and financial situation. This could be revealed by our investigators in recording the regular visits of the Subject. When necessary, investigators will be dispatched to conduct pretext visits to obtain concrete evidence about the Subject’s workplace and living environment.
Remember that the court’s sole purpose is to find out what’s best for the child/children. Showing that you take this seriously by following all the necessary laws and procedures always helps.
Learn more about how our professional Matrimonial Investigation services could help you in custody conflicts now, do not hesitate to contact us here.
