Bloomfield Hills Child Custody Attorney

If you are going through a divorce, your child custody arrangements are naturally an exceptionally important concern. You can also experience child custody issues post-divorce. In fact, many divorced parents will need to make at least one child custody modification as their children grow toward adulthood. Whatever your child custody issue is, an experienced Bloomfield Hills child custody attorney can help.

Legal and Physical Custody

Custody is generally broken down into two different categories that most people classify as legal and physical custody. Both can be either joint or sole. When legal custody is shared, both parents share the responsibility of making important decisions in their children’s lives, including decisions about:

• Their education
• Their religious upbringing
• Their medical care
• Their extracurricular activities

Physical custody refers to who has possession of the children and when. Even if one parent has sole custody, it’s rare for the other parent not to have some form of visitation with the children. Joint physical custody can be shared equally between both parents – or can be apportioned in myriad other ways that work for the family involved. If you and your soon-to-be-ex aren’t able to come to an agreeable custody arrangement between yourselves, the court will do so on your behalf – and the court’s decisions should always be guided by the best interests of the children involved.

The Best Interests of Your Children

When it comes to deciphering the best interests of your children, the court takes 12 important factors into consideration, including:

• The loving relationship and bond the children have with each of you
• You and your divorcing spouse’s individual capacity and inclination to provide your children with the love, guidance, affection, and ongoing education they need
• You and your divorcing spouse’s individual capacity and inclination to provide your children with the food, clothing, housing, and medical support they need
• The amount of time your children have lived in their current environment and whether it is stable, satisfactory, and worthy of maintaining 
• How well the current living situation supports the permanence of the family unit (are your children living with their siblings, for example)
• You and your divorcing spouse’s individual mental and physical health status
• Your children’s current home, school, and social situations (are they thriving where they are at, for example)
• Your children’s reasonable preferences (if the court deems them old enough to weigh in)
• You and your divorcing spouse’s individual capacity and inclination to foster an ongoing, loving relationship between your children and the other one of you
• Any incidence of domestic violence in the past
• Anything else the court finds relevant

Discuss Your Concerns with an Experienced Bloomfield Hills Child Custody Attorney

If you are facing an issue related to child custody arrangements, the dedicated and resourceful child custody attorneys at the Law Offices of Robbins & Licavoli in Bloomfield Hills are on your side. Our skilled legal team has the experience, commitment, and resources you seek, so please do not hesitate to contact us for more information today.