Family Law

Guest Post :: Tips to File For Child Custody

By Ben Stevens

A divorce is always a traumatic experience, one that involves mood swings, rampant emotions and difficult decisions. But the worst part is the fact that you may be separated from your child/children because you chose to split with your spouse. A battle for child custody is not something you can take lightly, especially if the future and wellbeing of your child depends on it. If you and your spouse are in the middle of a bitter battle for your offspring, consider the following points:

• Remember that it's about your kids: Although you may be mad at your spouse and want to get even, using your children is not the right or moral way to go about it. If you're seeking custody of your kids, it must be because you truly feel that you can offer them much more than your spouse can, in terms of financial and emotional support.
• Find a good lawyer: Although you may feel that you don't need one, a good lawyer, one you can trust, is an asset when you're in a child custody battle. Choose someone who is familiar, skilled and who is not in it just for the fees alone.
• Don't be complacent: You need to be careful about what you say, even casually, to people who are known to both you and your soon-to-be ex-spouse. A casual comment could come back to haunt you in the courtroom. Gather all the evidence that you'll need to prove your case in court and show that you are better positioned to provide for your child and give them a better future.
• Fight fair: It's not always the done thing, but throwing insults at your spouse and mud-slinging are not the way to go when you're in court fighting for custody of your children. Your kids don't need to hear what you and your spouse think of each other; it could affect their mental health and give them nightmares if they're really young and don't understand what's happening.
• Be prepared to accept visiting rights: In case you are not awarded custody, for the sake of your kids, be prepared to accept visitation rights and accept to the court's decision with dignity and decorum. The kids are already going to be torn apart by your decision to divorce, so don't make their lives more complicated by appealing the decision and prolonging the uncertainty.

This post was contributed by Kimberly Peterson, who writes about online criminal justice degrees. She welcomes your feedback at KimPeterson2006@gmail.com.

Full post as published by SC Family Law Blog on May 19, 2009 (boomark / email).