Tampa Child Custody Lawyer Fights For Your Family

There’s nothing in the legal world more emotionally devastating, time-consuming, and potentially life-altering than child custody issues. Every decision made, from the child’s time with each parent to protecting your rights and determining both your access and financial responsibilities, is of the utmost importance.

These life-changing decisions are often accompanied by the baggage of a strained relationship and even bad blood between spouses, which can be a recipe for disaster. That’s why it’s important to have an experienced, objective, and skilled Tampa child custody attorney on your side to make sure the best decisions are being made for your child.

How Are Child Custody Decisions Made in Court?

While there are many factors at play in the decision of how custody is arranged, the guiding principle of child custody decisions in the court can be described by these five words: best interest of the child.

The judge will listen to, and consider, a number of factors that the parents and attorneys bring to the attention of the court, but it will all be viewed through the lens of whether those factors will be in the best interests of the child. Because all parties should be working toward this same outcome, it helps to focus everyone’s efforts for positive progress. An experienced child custody attorney knows this and is prepared to help deliver that positive progress for you.

Do I Need to Go to Trial for My Child Custody Case?

The goal of most child custody cases is for the parents to come to a consensus on how the child’s time will be best shared among the parents. This can often be reached through non-trial options such as mediation. This is a process in which the parents guide the proceedings with the help of experienced attorneys and a mediator, attempting to come to an agreement that works for all parties and creates the best ideal situation for the child.

However, there are times where differences are unable to be worked out, and that’s where negotiations break down. At times like that, there is often no choice but to move to the option of a trial. However, a trial can be difficult and emotionally trying for both the parents and the child, so it’s in everyone’s best interests to make the mediation process work. If you do have to proceed to trial, you absolutely should have a skilled family law attorney with trial experience on your side.

What Types of Child Custody Outcomes Are There?

One of the primary concerns of a child custody case is establishing parental responsibility when a couple will no longer remain together. Parental responsibility can generally be divided into three primary categories:

Shared Parental Responsibility

With shared parental responsibility, both parents usually have an equal share of the rights when making decisions for their child. Those decisions can cover several categories, including:

• Health decisions
• Religious affiliations and attendance
• Educational choices
• Recreational and other activities
• Other important life decisions

Shared Parental Responsibility with Ultimate Decision-Making

As mentioned above, in most situations, parents will exercise shared responsibility and decision-making for the child across all these categories. However, there are cases in which this simply isn’t possible.

When parents are incapable of coming to an agreement about certain issues, the court will find that it’s in the best interests of the child that one of the two parents would have the “ultimate decision-making” power. This gives one parent the ability to break the stalemate of a disagreement because they have been empowered by the court as the final decision-maker.

Sole Parental Responsibility

In some cases, sole responsibility is awarded to one parent. This means that the parent with sole parental responsibility can make those important decisions for their child without the need to consult the other parent beforehand.

This is not generally awarded, and in most cases when it is, it’s because shared parental responsibility would be detrimental to the child in some way. There could be numerous reasons for that, from previously demonstrated bad decision-making to questionable behaviors and practices from the other parent. In all these categories of parental responsibility, it’s best to work with a skilled attorney during the process to make sure that the option you are seeking is best for your child and the most likely outcome for the court to agree to.

What Helps a Judge Decide What Child Custody Should Be?

The judge considers everything presented to the court when making child custody decisions. However, there are some issues that are more visible or more impactful that are worth noting. In particular, the evidence and testimony introduced throughout the process will weigh strongly on their decision.

Parental testimony is strong, but other witnesses can also have a big impact. Evidence of poor decision-making, drug or alcohol abuse, or proof of child neglect or abuse will weigh heavily on the judge’s decisions as well.

The other factor that can have a powerful effect on a judge’s child custody decision is the behavior of the parents. While judges will remain objective and not “hold grudges” against certain parents, there is no doubt that sometimes one party’s behavior towards their soon-to-be ex-spouse or their child can be either an asset or a disadvantage if it’s seen to be serving the parent as opposed to the best interests of the child.

Do I Really Need a Family Law Attorney for My Tampa Child Custody Case?

As with most types of law in the United States, most family law cases in Florida don’t require the parent to have an attorney. You can handle your own case. However, there are many reasons you shouldn’t take such a huge risk with such an important part of your life.

Knowing what’s best for your child is not the same thing as knowing how to get what’s best for your child from a legal proceeding. Your best intentions may not be the way to get the best result, and no one knows that better than an experienced RTRLAW Tampa family law attorney who deals with these types of cases all the time.

Rather than risk getting an unfavorable custody result because of a misunderstanding or misstep in the process, it’s best to hire a family law attorney who knows how to navigate the system with care, strategy, compassion, and diligence.

RTRLAW in Tampa has experienced family law attorneys who will fight for your rights and to help you get the best results possible. We know family is the most important aspect of life, and we want you to have the best outcome for yourself and your children. Contact us today at our Tampa office at (813) 370-0229 or call or text us toll free at 1-833-HIRE-RTR (1-833-447-3787) for a no-obligation case review and retain one of our skilled and compassionate family law attorneys to provide the child custody support you need.