Fort Ogelthorpe Child Custody

Child custody in Fort Oglethorpe is decided in civil courts, but that does not mean that hoping the judges sees everything in the same light as you. In fact, parents looking to have custody of their children should take every step they are able to to ensure that they are the primary guardian. With the help of an experienced attorney, this could happen.

Child Custody in Fort Oglethorpe

Child custody is determined by parenting plans in terms of who is the primary residential parent and who is the alternate residential parent. Parenting plans, in general, are governed by Tennessee statutes §36-6-401. There is a section for decision-making on the parenting plan and typically, parents are listed as joint decision-makers. That means that they have joint custody of a child. There are circumstances where one parent has primary decision-making of a child, and that person typically would be considered to be the primary custodian.

Custodial Parents and What That Term Means

A custodial parent, more commonly known as a primary residential parent, is defined as the person who parents the child more than 50 percent of the time.

Rights and Responsibilities of the Primary Residential Parent

The rights and responsibilities of the primary residential parent are outlined in TCA §36-6-101. Each parent has the same rights when it comes to their ability to parent the child, and those rights include:

The right to phone calls with the child twice per week
The right to send mail to the child
The right to receive notice of hospitalization within 24 hours
The right to receive educational records
The right to be free of derogatory remarks from the other parent
48 hour notice of any extra current curricular activities the child is involved in
The right to receive 48 hour notice of any plans for the other parents to take the child out of state for an itinerary trip
The right to participate in a child’s education

Responsibilities of Alternative Parents in Fort Oglethorpe

The non-custodial parent, or the alternate residential parent, is defined as a person who parents the child less than 50 percent of the time.

The rights and responsibilities of the alternative residential parent are the same as those of the primary residential parent. They are defined in Tennessee Code §36-6-101.

Purpose of Child Custody

The general purpose of child custody is for parties to enter into a parenting plan or a parenting schedule that defines what time each parent is going to parent a child or children. Each parenting plan in Tennessee is going to have a day-to-day schedule, a holiday schedule, and a schedule for the child’s school breaks. It is also going to have child support issues determined and in child support amount calculate calculated, and it is going to have the rights and responsibilities of each parent.

Speak to a Compassionate Attorney Today

Child custody in Fort Oglethorpe is a large part of any divorce proceeding. While you feel that your child is best looked after by you, the courts may be less forgiving. Instead of trusting in the courts, let a legal advocate vie for your goals in civil court. Reach out to an attorney today.