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Custody battles are often nerve-wracking for parents. If you’re concerned you may not receive the timeshare you deserve with your child or the other parent actively combats your efforts to obtain an equitable outcome, you need an experienced Calabasas child custody lawyer to help defend your rights.
At Feinberg & Waller, APC, our compassionate family law attorneys help clients deal with custody cases in Los Angeles and Ventura County. We’ll fight to protect your parental rights and your child’s best interests in and out of the courtroom.
Schedule a consultation with our team! Contact us online or via phone at (866) 463-3852. We have offices in Beverly Hills, Calabasas & Westlake Village.
To obtain custody in California, a parent must file a custody case with their county court. Parents typically obtain a custody arrangement in one of two ways:
As a parent, you want the best for your child. Having an experienced Calabasas child custody attorney at your side during your case can help you pursue a custody arrangement that enables your child to thrive.
California courts recognize two types of custody:
Parents can split both physical and legal custody in one of two ways:
Physical custody is what most parents think of in the context of “child custody,” since the physical custodian is with whom the child will typically spend most of their time. Even when one parent is awarded sole physical custody, the court will almost always set a visitation (or “access” or “timeshare;” same concept, different labels) schedule for the other parent.
Legal custody, on the other hand, deals with who will have the right to make decisions relating to the health, safety, and welfare of the child, the so-called “big” decisions in the child’s life.
While a parent with physical custody has the discretion to make day-to-day decisions for the child, the legal custodian will have the right to make more important decisions like what school the child will attend, what religion they will be raised under, as well as important medical decisions. In most cases, physical custody will be awarded to the parent that the child will spend the most time with, and both parents will share legal custody.
The court may award either parent sole custody of the child, or award both parents joint custody. Joint custody does not mean the child spends an equal amount of time with each parent. In a joint custody arrangement, the child may spend 60% of their time living with one parent and 40% of their time with the other.
Generally, courts prefer it when parents engage in joint custody arrangements. Most experts agree (and the California Legislature has so determined) that both parents should be involved in their child’s upbringing and share parenting responsibilities even after divorce as much as is reasonably practical. As such, the court will try to award joint custody whenever possible.
Some courts will simply state that the so-called non-custodial parent will have “reasonable visitation,” but in this author’s opinion, it is always best to get a detailed and specific set schedule in the custody orders so there will always be a “fallback” position in the event the parents cannot agree.
For example, it’s possible for parents to have joint physical custody, so the child spends time living with both parents but only give legal custody to one parent.
Content: Most judges in California seek to avoid sole or full custody, as having both parents take part of the child’s life is seen as healthy and in their best interests. However, if you feel your child(ren) are in a dangerous situation, requesting full custody is part of doing your due diligence. Here are several scenarios in which full custody may be awarded:
If you are falsely accused of one or more of these scenarios, your parental rights may be at risk! Don’t hesitate to contact our child custody lawyers in Beverly Hills for protection.
You may have heard of the term “unfit parent.” California defines a parent to be unfit when he or she fails to provide guidance, support, or care for their child(ren).
This ties directly into the material above. If you are seeking full custody of your child, proving the mother or father unfit can expedite that process. Keep in mind, any false allegations against your ex-spouse are taken very seriously and may come with strict penalties. We can provide guidance for you in these areas.
When custody battles get heated, divorcing spouses often accuse the other of being “unfit” to care for the child(ren). These are serious accusations that the court doesn’t take lightly. This is because being ruled as unfit can have severe custody or visitation consequences. If you believe that your spouse presents an immediate danger to the child, then it is your due diligence to make this known to the court. When evaluating your claim, a judge may look at the following possible scenarios when determining “fitness”:
If you’re looking for local resources for child custody matters in Calabasas, California, here are some options:
Schedule a consultation with our Los Angeles child custody lawyers! Contact us online or via phone at (866) 463-3852 to get vast knowledge on your side.