Seattle Divorce Lawyers Who Can Help Your Child Custody Problem

Under Washington State family law, when parents divorce the court most often enters a parenting plan which provides for one parent as the primary custodial parent and reasonable visitation between the children and the other parent. Just what amounts to reasonable visitation depends upon the circumstances of each case. Courts generally prefer to order visitation as every other weekend, one or two evenings during the week, and half of all holidays, special occasions and school breaks. In some cases, more time will be ordered, and in some cases less. In custody cases in Seattle divorce lawyers will sometimes argue for equal residential time between the parents.

However, Seattle divorce lawyers know all too well that sometimes these circumstances turn out to have little to do with parenting. That is, sometimes the non-custodial parent settles quickly or doesn’t have an attorney during the proceedings. Without the advice of a competent Washington State child custody attorney, it is difficult to know to what you are entitled. Seattle divorce lawyers also know that the ones most adversely affected by a lack of parental quality time are the children. Families don’t have to completely fracture just because the parents break up.

The best way to insure adequate visitation between the non-custodial parent and a child is to make sure it is provided for in the first parenting plan entered. This is because there is a strong presumption against modifying parenting plans in order to maintain the child’s home stability. However, Seattle divorce lawyers do get parenting plans modified under certain conditions. First, there must have been a substantial change in circumstances regarding the child’s or the custodial parent’s life. If these facts can be shown, an increase in the number of residential days for the non-custodial parent is possible. While the criteria for the modification is too involved to explain here, competent Seattle divorce attorneys are your best resource for information.

The Seattle divorce lawyers at McKinley Irvin have years of child custody litigation experience. Our Seattle divorce lawyers have been helping families with quality time since 1991. If you have child custody questions, contact one of our Seattle divorce lawyers today. We handle each case with intensity and respect, and we’ll give you some strait answers about your case.

The author is a Seattle divorce lawyers law student. Please visit McKinley Irvin for more information.