Legal Question in Family Law in Arizona

Retaining Sole Custody

I have been the primary caregiver of my son since his birth and he is now 2. The biological father had to start paying child support since 3/01. Since I would not voluntarily lower his support obligation, he filed a petition for joint custody in sept. of 2001. Settlement negotiations reached a stalemate in Jan of 2002 (still the money issue). I am now handling matter pro per. I am working on the basis of primary caregiver and established custodial environment. What are my chances of the Judge allowing joint or shared custody? I have quite a bit of evidence showing a vexatious lawsuit due to non-compliance with his support request. Thank you.


Asked on 5/09/02, 3:16 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Monica Donaldson Stewart Donaldson Stewart, P.C.

Re: Retaining Sole Custody

Thank you for your inquiry.

When you say he is seeking joint custody, I am unclear whether you mean he is seeking joint decision-making authority or whether he is seeking to have equal parenting time.

Without knowing more about your specific situation, I cannot even speculate on how the judge will rule, but I can tell you two things that will affect every case:

1) A court can only order joint custody if doing so is in the best interests of the child (this is the standard). There are some factors that would lead a judge to believe that joint custody is not best (e.g. domestic violence, substance abuse/ drug convictions, etc.).

2) Custody and child support will be dealt with completely independently. If he is seeking joint custody only to punish you for seeking more support, this is not a good enough reason. Having joint decision-making authority would not affect his child support, but the greater his parenting time, the higher his "visitation credit," so the child support might be reduced.

If you would like to discuss this matter further, please contact my office at (480) 792-9770. I charge $30 for a 30 minute consultation, or $60 for a 60 minute consultation.

Sincerely,

Monica H. Donaldson, Esq.

Read more
Answered on 5/12/02, 4:08 pm


Related Questions & Answers

More Family Law, Divorce, Child Custody and Adoption questions and answers in Arizona