Ideally, you and your co-parent will have come to an agreement on child custody during divorce proceedings. If this didn’t happen, then the court will have stepped in and come to a ruling based on the best interests of the child. In any case, custody orders are legally binding once signed off on.
One parent may not agree with the terms of a custody order. Is this enough of a reason to ask the court to make a modification? Generally, no. However, there are some exceptional circumstances in which the court may consider adjusting child custody rights. Outlined below are some scenarios where this could happen.
When a custody order is repeatedly violated
As stated previously, custody orders are legally binding. This means that parents must honor them. In some cases, one parent may disregard the custody arrangement as a form of protest. If this happens more than once, with no reasonable explanation, then the court might intervene. It’s likely that they will demand a reasonable explanation as to why the agreement has not been stuck to, and they might make adjustments should they be necessary.
When a parent is ill
It’s not uncommon for the court to make temporary custody modifications while a parent recovers from an illness or injury. Sometimes, parents have to deal with mental health issues, physical ailments, or addictions, which can take some time. During the recovery period, the court may decide that it’s in the best interests of the child only to have supervised visits with their other parent. It’s important to note that such measures are usually temporary and set with the aim of involving both parents in the child’s upbringing as much as possible.
These are just some scenarios when a custody order may need to be adjusted. If you have concerns about your custody rights, then it’s probably best that you seek some legal guidance on the matter.