A Few Truths About Child Custody in California

If you’re a parent considering a divorce in California, you may be interested to know that there are certain truths that could influence your decision about whether or not a divorce is the best thing for your family. Finding a knowledgeable Irvine child custody lawyer who can help you navigate the process is key if you’re seeking to retain some form of custody over your children.

While there are several misconceptions regarding child custody laws in California, we provide a few realities about custody and visitation rights that parents should know when preparing for or considering a divorce.

Family Courts in California Do Not Favor Mothers or Fathers

While some states do favor mothers over fathers, that’s not something you will have to worry about in California. Instead, the court will determine custody based on whether each parent can actually handle the task of being a parent. Many judges will assume that parents should be rewarded joint custody and visitation rights unless it can be argued for otherwise in court. Usually, if two divorcing spouses are in mediation or navigating an uncontested divorce, they can make their own child custody arrangements, and those agreements will generally be approved by the court. Remember, the standard applied by the court will always be whatever is in the best interest of the child. Ultimately, that will mean frequent and uninterrupted contact with both their parents who are better off remaining amicable for the sake of their children.

Custody is One of the Main Reasons Divorces Go To Trial

While most divorces can generally be handled out of court, it doesn’t always work out that way when there are kids involved. Because the well-being of a child is so important to both parents, they often find it difficult to work out their differences when it comes to child custody arrangements. Between alimony and child support payments, and working out a visitation schedule that works for both their schedules, parents can find themselves battling it out in court even when they resolved to keep their divorce amicable. Avoid becoming one of these couples by recognizing that compromise is vital for your child’s well-being, and make it a point to try and work out your custody agreement in mediation.

A Visitation Order is Only Good if It Can Be Enforced

There is often a disconnect between custody and visitation arrangements and how they actually work out in practice. Parents who have intense work or travel schedules are often unable to meet the demands of their visitation agreements and may often leave the other spouse in a bind. Whether you’re the spouse who is constantly having to renege on their obligation or the one who is often unexpectedly left with the kids, remember that you can always take your former spouse back to court to resolve your visitation issues; however, doing so may prove to be unfruitful. Instead, consider renegotiating your child support payments if you find yourself needing childcare more often than not.

Contact an Irvine Child Custody Lawyer

Working out the perfect child custody arrangement depends on how willing you are to work with your spouse on some difficult decisions. Hiring an experienced Irvine child custody lawyer can go a long way to getting your custody arrangements resolved. Contact our offices today.

Frequently Asked Questions

Do California courts favor mothers in custody decisions?

No. California law expressly prohibits a preference based on a parent’s sex, and the standard is the child’s best interest. What can look like a maternal preference is usually the weight courts give to continuity of caregiving: the parent who has been handling the daily routine often receives more time, because stability matters to the analysis. That is a pattern-of-caregiving factor rather than a gender factor, and it cuts in favor of whichever parent has been doing the work.

Is equal time the default?

No. California law encourages frequent and continuing contact with both parents where consistent with the child’s health, safety, and welfare, but there is no presumption of a fifty-fifty schedule. Courts build schedules around each parent’s actual availability, the distance between homes, the child’s age and school situation, and how well the parents can coordinate. An equal schedule is common where the practical circumstances support it and unworkable where they do not.

Does child support depend on custody, or the other way around?

Custody is decided first and on its own terms, and support follows from it. The parenting schedule is one of the two principal inputs into the support formula, which means the two are linked mathematically but not legally: a court does not adjust custody to affect support, and a parent who seeks more time primarily to reduce support tends to be recognized. The child’s best interest governs the schedule regardless of the financial consequence.

Can parents make their own custody arrangement?

Yes, and courts strongly prefer it. A parenting plan the parents design themselves is nearly always approved and is nearly always better, because they know the children’s activities, the school calendar, and each other’s real schedules. The court’s role in an agreed plan is confirming it serves the children’s best interest. Where parents cannot agree, contested custody matters in Orange County go to court-connected recommending counseling before a hearing, and that counselor’s recommendation carries substantial weight.