New York Child Custody and Visitation Agreements – Think About Traveling with Children

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The Courts have found travel to be in the best interest of the child. Consequently, a parent should not unreasonably withhold consent for the child to travel with the other parent. If the non-traveling parent unreasonably withholds consent then the court can override the non-traveling parent’s objection to the travel.  See Matter of Arroyo v. Agosta, 2010 NY Slip Op …

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Happy 7th Birthday to Rincker Law!

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Rincker Law, PLLC is 7 years old!  With each anniversary of my law practice, I like to reflect on the previous year.   Ruth has been my right hand girl for a few years now but Ravi Cattry joined the team a year ago.  It’s been great having these two ladies a part of the firm’s growth over the years. …

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New York Child Custody and Visitation Law: Sibling Visitation

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Siblings have a statutory right to visitation with each other.  This is true whether the relationship be of full-blood siblings or half-blood siblings.  There is a two-part analysis for evaluating sibling visitation.  First, standing – or the right to be heard – has to be established.  Second, the court must determine whether the visitation is in the best interest of …

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New York Child Custody and Visitation Law: What About Supervised Visitation?

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The New York Court of Appeals has held that absent any threat to the child’s wellbeing, those people who have visitation rights have the right to unsupervised visitation with his or her child.  Weiss v. Weiss, 52 N.Y.2d 170 (1981); Nancy M. v. Brian M., 227 A.D.2d 404 (1996); Twersky v. Twersky, 103 A.D.2d 775 (1984). For the court to …

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Child Custody and Visitation Law: Getting a Parenting Plan for School Breaks and Summer Vacation

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School Breaks Schools in New York typically have four (4) school breaks:  Thanksgiving/Fall Break, Christmas/Winter Break, President’s Day/Mid-Winter Break, and Easter/Spring Break.  When drafting a parenting plan, parents should be cognizant on what was agreed to with the holiday schedule.  Here is an example schedule (for illustrative purposes): School Break Time Even Years Odd Years Mid-Winter Recess (President’s Day Week) …

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Child Custody and Visitation: Getting a Holiday Schedule in Place

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After deciding the “basic parenting time schedule”, parents should then decide how they want to handle holidays. Holidays include the following: School holidays/ National holidays (e.g., Columbus Day, Memorial Day) Religious holidays (e.g., Easter) Other holidays (e.g., Halloween) Birthdays (parents and children) Father’s Day and Mother’s Day Parents should make a list of all applicable holidays in which the parents …

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Additional Considerations with Child Custody and Visitation Agreements – Think About Communication

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Information Sharing Most parenting plans include a provision requiring the parents to share information about the child(ren) with such information as: medical records psychological records law enforcement records school report cards school progress reports school event calendar (e.g., school play, parent-teacher conferences) extra-curricular activities calendar (e.g., baseball game schedule or dance recitals). Some parents decide to keep a shared calendar …

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New York Child Custody Law: What About Splitting Siblings?

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The courts prefer to keep siblings together for stability, companionship and close family ties. “Young brothers and sisters need each other’s strengths and association in their everyday and often common experiences, and to separate them, unnecessarily, is likely to be traumatic and harmful.” Obey v. Degling, 37 N.Y.2d 768 (1975).  However, the courts will order split custody if it’s in …

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New York Child Custody Law: So What Exactly is “Legal Custody?”

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Legal custody refers to the parent or parents that have decision-making authority over “major decisions” regarding the child, such as non-emergency medical care, religion, education, and extracurricular activities.  When you think of the phrase “legal custody,” replace it with the phrase “decision-making” (e.g., sole decision-making or joint decision-making).  Please note that “day-to-day” decisions are made with the parent who has …

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New York Child Custody Law: So What Exactly is “Physical Custody”?

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  The term “physical custody” or “residential custody” is who the child(ren) live with primarily (i.e., over 50% of the time by looking at overnight stays and “waking hours”). There are two main options with physical custody: (1) Primary Physical Custody with Visitation to the non-custodial parent – Primary physical custody to one parent while giving the other parent reasonable visitation/parenting …

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Overview of the Law on Child Custody in New York

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  Determinations of custody are based on the “best interest of the child.” See DRL § 70; DRL § 240; see Eschbach v. Eschbach, 56 N.Y.2d 167 (N.Y. 1982); see Welsh v. Lewis, 292 A.D.2d 536 (2nd Dept., 2002) (emphasis added). These factors include, inter alia: (1) The parent who has been the primary caretaker; (2) The age and health …

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Choosing a New York Family Law or Divorce Mediator

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It is important to choose the right mediator for you and your particular dispute. Mediators vary in experience, language proficiency, subject matter expertise, style, fees, communication, and level of involvement. For example, some mediators are able to speak fluently in different languages or have knowledge in certain family law disputes (e.g., animal ownership disputes). Some mediators do “virtual mediation” while others …

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