Answering Common Child Custody Questions
At Cylkowski Law Office, P.A., we know how confusing it can be to try and navigate through the child custody portion of your divorce without an attorney. Before you schedule your initial consultation by calling 651-882-7808 or emailing us here, we can answer some of your early questions here, including:
Do I have to have a lawyer help me with my child-related matters?
Minnesota law does allow paralegals to assist parents with matters involving child support and parenting time. Electing to have a legal paraprofessional can offer you the benefit of saving costs while still achieving the same results.
What is the difference between legal and physical custody?
Legal custody includes the right to make decisions for the children that involve their life, such as medical and educational choices. Physical custody determines how the children live between parents. It is possible for ex-spouses to share legal custody, but one spouse has full physical custody.
How does joint and sole custody affect our child’s living arrangements?
Sole custody means that a child can keep most of their possessions with the parent that has primary custody and bases their schedule on theirs. A joint custody agreement allows the child to maintain relationships with both parents on a more balanced level.
How do I obtain the primary residence designation in our custody arrangement?
You will need to have a court appoint your residence as the primary one, which is a decision that they come to based on factors like where the child spends the majority of their time, if there are environmental dangers at a residence, or even if the child has integrated into one family hand has the other parent’s consent.
We cannot agree to a parenting time arrangement. What factors does the court look to when determining custody and visitation?
There are many factors that a judge considers, including the wishes of the parents and children, the relationship that each parent has with the child, the capabilities each parent has to provide for the child, and how willing each spouse is to co-parent with each other.
What is the impact of custody on child support?
In Minnesota, the more nights a child stays with a parent, the less the paying parent needs to pay in child support. To help get an accurate determination of how much time each parent has with the child, software can help track the time each parent receives.
Our existing arrangement is no longer in our child’s best interests. How can I get a modification?
When one or both spouses experience a major life change, it may be grounds for a modification. Some examples of valid reasons for modifications include at least one spouse getting remarried, school or extracurricular schedule changes, a parent or child suffering health problems, or a parent having a considerable career change that calls for relocation.