Child Custody Lawyer Sydney

Custody requirements can vary depending on the age of the child. Whenever a child is a minor, in other words, they are under 18 years of age each parent shares joint responsibility for the child. We call this principle equal shared parental responsibility. Both parents will be involved in making major long-term decisions for their children.

These involved decisions encompass a large spectrum of life choices such as schooling, health, and religion. Whenever possible, the family law court will always aim to share parental responsibility. In some cases, this will not always be possible, and the removal of parental responsibility from one or both parents can be done when the court decides it is in the best interest of the child. Keep in mind that equally shared parental responsibility is not the same as spending equal time with your child.

Common misconceptions about legal entitlements to equal contact between each parent frequently circulate. Additionally, parental responsibility for the children will apply regardless of whether the child’s parents were ever in a relationship, married, in a de-facto relationship, or in any other extenuating circumstance. At O’Sullivan Legal, we offer legal services for all parenting matters to ensure your child will be taken care of throughout the entire custody process.

Contrary to popular opinion, there are no concrete rulings regarding the arrangements of which parent children should live and spend time with. Previously, custody or contact arrangements were made between each party. However, these terms are no longer used in Australian family law.

In most cases, each parent will discuss the child’s needs and will then come to an agreement about housing arrangements and dividing time spent between each. If both parents are able to come to agreeable terms, then you do not need to go to court. Parenting arrangements can be prepared and drafted, then sent to court pending approval via a consent order. In family law, dispute resolution is the favoured tactic for resolving complex disputes over child custody arrangements.

These negotiations can increase in complexity depending on the current partnership status of the two parents. Whenever a child is born to an unmarried mother, the birthing mother is automatically granted sole custodianship. Unless a mutual arrangement can be met, the father does not have any legal right to see that child without a court order. As such, any father wishing to visit or establish custody of that child should first establish paternity.

In cases whereby the parents reach an agreement, the living arrangements and child visitation schedule, a parenting plan or parenting orders should be put in place.

A parenting plan is a written parenting agreement that organises making arrangements in regard to the children. This document records important information, including where they will reside, when they stay with the other parent, a visitation schedule for other holidays, e.g. school holidays, and other parenting matters.

While a parenting plan isn’t legally enforceable, we suggest sending this document to the courts so that it becomes an enforceable agreement.

For those who have finalised writing an application for consent orders and have included their parenting plan, you can have it authorised by the court as a Consent Order.

If you need assistance drafting a parenting plan, we have the best child custody lawyers who are here to help you.