DELAWARE Injury Lawyers

Preparing for a Child Custody Hearing in Delaware

If you and your child’s other parent are unable to come to an agreement regarding the custody of your children, you may need to go through mediation to resolve your issues.

Even if you are able to come to an agreement, you may still need to have a hearing to make your arrangement legal and binding. Continue reading to learn more about what you can expect in your child custody hearing and how to prepare.

Child Custody and Your Visitation Schedule

Before going to court, you should always try to come to an agreement with your child’s other parent regarding your children’s custody and visitation plan. If you can’t do this on your own, you can attend mediation, where a mediator will listen to both parents’ concerns and desires and make suggestions that will be in the best interests of your children.

Typically, you’ll need to decide whether you’ll share physical custody of the kids, meaning both parents will have the children at their homes equally, or if one parent will retain physical custody and the other will have visitation rights.

You’ll also need to establish whether you’ll share joint legal custody, meaning both parents will be making important decisions regarding their children’s lifestyles and wellbeing, or if one parent will make these choices. The latter is referred to as sole legal custody.

Once your custody arrangement has been established, you’ll formulate your visitation plan, which can be arranged to fit your situation, although Delaware family courts will generally follow certain guidelines thought to be in the best interests of most children.

Your Delaware child custody lawyer can help you and your former partner resolve these issues before the decision is taken out of your hands.

What to Expect in Your Delaware Child Custody Hearing

If you and your former spouse are not able to come to an agreement regarding child custody, you’ll need to prepare for a hearing. Before your hearing, you’ll be able to seek relevant information from your child’s other parent.

This will include any psychological evaluations of the children, depositions from people involved in the children’s lives that will discuss the child’s best interests, and any other evidence the other side might have.

At your hearing, the evidence and witness testimony will be reviewed before a decision about your child’s custody arrangement is made. The children may even need to be interviewed prior to coming to a decision. A decision may then be issued.

If you and your child’s other parent are able to come to an arrangement on your own, the court will review your agreement and, as long as it will benefit the child, make it a legal and binding custody plan.

Contact a Delaware Child Custody Attorney

When you need help preparing for your upcoming child custody hearing, or if you have questions about your case, get in touch with a highly trained Delaware child custody lawyer at Barros, McNamara, Malkiewicz & Taylor. You can contact our office via the quick contact form below or by calling 302-734-8400 to schedule your no-obligation case evaluation today.