Why talk to a lawyer about parenting?
Most people only think of getting legal advice if things have gone wrong. But parents who live apart from their child’s other parent (either because of a relationship breakdown, or because they never lived together in the first place) can benefit from legal advice that is focussed on preventing problems arise.
There is still a lot of mis-information in the community about the rights and responsibilities of separated parents. All families are different and working out what “shared parental responsibility” means for any particular family is not always easy. We have seen cases where people make inappropriate arrangements, believing that that law allows or requires them to do this. This includes:
- unreasonably denying the other parent a role in the child’s life
- unreasonably insisting on equal time
- equating contact with child support
- unreasonable conditions on time spent with the other parent
- difficulties with extended family.
Some people are reluctant to approach a lawyer for advice, believing that this will make things more complicated or cause more problems. We like to think of our legal advice as just one part of what parents need to know to meet the many challenges of parenting while living apart from the other parent.
Getting legal advice is particularly worthwhile before going into any form of mediation or Family Dispute Resolution. Just like any other negotiation about something important, it is wise to know where you stand and what the best case and worst case outcomes will be if you don’t reach agreement.
Getting legal advice does not have to mean that you are engaging a lawyer for the whole case. You can simply get some advice about how the law applies to your situation, and then use that advice to guide the decisions you make.
