Divorce and separation can be a real mess especially when there is a child caught in between. Obviously, although the couple is romantically disconnected, the welfare of the child should come first. Despite the personal conflicts between the two parents, they will still have to work together to make things work with the child and rear him to become a good man later on. While working together may be difficult, it can still work if a co-parenting plan is developed, implemented, and respected by both parents. Now, co-parenting plans are normally legally recognized agreements that provide certain baselines on how to parent a divorced or separated couple's child. The document will include custody schedules, health management, and other factors that will affect the raising of the child. With all these in there, it is quite critical to have well-drafted co-parenting plan. With this in mind, here are a couple of tips on how to create a co-parenting plan.
- Work together. At this point, the divorce or separation may be really messy however, for the sake of the child, you and your former lover should sit down and work together to discuss how the needs of the child should be provided by both. Of course, you will probably be engaging in word wars with regards to child custody and alimony. These issues should be secondary at best. The first thing that both of you should is to sit down, discuss, and develop a solid co-parenting plan that both of you are amenable with and that the child will benefit from. All right, it may be easy to say but hard to do. That is true however; it needs to be done so get on with it.
- Develop the plan. If child custody can't be set aside, then agree to a settlement. Decide on a visitation schedule that is amenable to the other parent (most likely the father) should you be granted full custody. At this point, you will want to be flexible. As much as you hate his face right now, you still have to acknowledge that he is the father of your child and has rights as well. When finalizing this agreement, make sure to be detailed and specific by including days and times. Don't forget to include picking up and dropping off arrangements as well.
Now, aside from these, you will want to set certain ground rules as well. For instance, making sure that each parent be there during the child's most important days such as sports competitions, performances, and graduation. Furthermore, you will want to settle the issue of money when it comes to financially supporting the needs of the child. While most courts may side with the mother and require the father to pay alimony, it would be better to settle this outside of court. It would actually be best if both parents can decide on a fair and equal sharing of resources.
Once every single detail has been agreed upon, have a lawyer draft the final contract and sign it in front of each other. The agreement should then be submitted immediately to the city or state's local courts as evidence that parenting despite separation or divorce is amenable to both parties. Once this document has been submitted to the court, it is non-negotiable and is a legally binding contract. Should you fail to live up to the terms, you can be cited for contempt by the court.
Add comment