Hints on Establishing a Post-Divorce Parenting Plan

As a member of the law firm Boxer McLaughlin, A Professional Corporation, Doreen Boxer often handles divorce and child custody cases. While parents should consult with a skilled family lawyer like Doreen Boxer before finalizing any custody arrangements, the California court system has issued helpful guidelines on how to develop a plan for parenting after a divorce. The documents highlight several common issues that arise when determining custody arrangements, and offer advice on how to solve them.

For instance, the articles offer guidelines on planning for illness. They remind divorcing parents to keep a child’s needs at the center of the parenting guideline. They suggest that, in the absence of abuse, both parents should share responsibility for sick children and missing work to care for children too sick to go to school. The guidelines also remind parents that they may need to be flexible as the children grow. Custody arrangements need to be about the best interests of the children, not about parental vanity. That means that arrangements might need to be adjusted as children become involved with different sports and clubs.

The court suggested that parents use calendars to keep track of visitation schedules and that they remain polite to each other in all interactions. The authors remind parents that children thrive on structure and routine. Custody agreements should include predictable schedules so that children don’t become upset or confused by too many changes.