Last updated on October 8, 2024
To help ensure accuracy, this page was written, edited and is periodically reviewed by a knowledgeable team of legal writers per our editorial guidelines. It was approved for publication by founding attorney Samuel Siemon, who has amassed extensive experience as a Georgia family law attorney. Our last modified date shows when the page underwent a review.
Atlanta Child Custody Attorneys
During a divorce, the child custody agreement may be the most challenging issue between you and your former spouse. You want what is best for your child or children, but with the deterioration of your relationship, you and your child’s other parent may not always agree on what is best.
At The Siemon Law Firm Divorce and Family Law Attorneys, P.C., our custody attorneys are experienced in helping parents work through the difficulties of child custody, visitation and parenting plans, and they help obtain an agreement that truly is in the best interests of their children. To schedule a consultation, call 770-888-5120 to make an appointment at our Atlanta office.
Best Interests Of The Children
This is the standard that a court will use in Georgia and virtually every other state when settling custody disputes. If you and your child’s other parent cannot reach an agreement on custody, the court will use this standard and impose a plan of its own choosing. You want to avoid this, as no judge will understand all the details of your children’s life as well as you do. By failing to agree on a plan, you give up control and allow a third party (the judge) to set up your custody plan.
You don’t want this because the judge will not have to live with your plan. You will. And so will your children. We can help you work with your child’s other parent and put together a parenting plan that will work well with your family and your life circumstance.
What Child Custody Schedule Is Best?
You want to create a custody plan that is realistic and workable. You and your children must live with this plan every day until they reach adulthood. A parenting plan that recognizes and respects the realities and needs of the children will work best. Joint physical custody allows both parents to be fully engaged with their children’s lives, but this is where the scheduling needs to recognize the reality of your situation.
If one parent has a job that demands frequent travel every month or has rotating shifts every week, it is unlikely that a 50-50 sharing of time is possible. Nonetheless, there are a wide variety of scheduling options possible and when the parents are willing to cooperate and maintain a civil relationship, the children will benefit.
Child Custody Modifications In Atlanta
The plan you create is likely to change. When your children are young, they have different needs and different schedules. A plan that is ideal for preschoolers is likely to be very different from the one that works with busy teenagers. Additionally, children 14 years or older can have a say in where they want to live. A court still must approve, but they are permitted a custody election. By creating a plan that is robust and flexible, you can minimize your conflict and court costs.
Doing What Is Best For Your Children
Parents are often concerned about the effect a divorce will have on their children. Research tends to indicate that it is more the conflict, stress and tension that results from the failed relationship of the parents than simply the separation. You will need to make sacrifices for your children, but all parents must accept that, divorced or not.
By keeping a cooperative relationship with your child’s other parent, you can stay in control. Parents who choose a ‘scorched-earth’ policy and never cooperate will likely have to live with court-imposed custody arrangements, and it will often be less than optimal. Judges like parents who work together and he or she is likely to be far more agreeable to parents who behave in this manner.
Our Atlanta child custody attorneys understand that there are cases where one parent is unwilling to work toward the best interests of the children, and we have the litigation skills to help you and protect your children in such cases.
Contact Our Atlanta Child Custody Firm
Children and divorce bring many challenges. We can help you develop a custody agreement you need and that is in your children’s best interest. To speak to a lawyer in our Atlanta office, please contact us today at 770-888-5120.
