Legal Question in Family Law in Michigan

Re: custody

There is a procedure for a parent to petition the court for sole custody. The court MUST address each of the following twelve factors:

The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parties involved and the child;

The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to give the child love, affection, and guidance and to continue the education and raising of the child in his or her religion or creed, if any;

The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to provide the child with food, clothing, medical care or other remedial care recognized and permitted under the laws of the state in place of medical care, and other material needs;

The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment, and the desirability of maintaining continuity;

The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home or homes;

The moral fitness of the parties involved;

The mental and physical health of the parties involved;

The home, school, and community record of the child;

The reasonable preference of the child, if the court considers the child to be of sufficient age to express preference;

The willingness and ability of each of the parties to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent or the child and the parents;

Domestic violence, regardless of whether the violence was directed against or witnessed by the child;

Any other factor considered by the court to be relevant to a particular child custody dispute.

Unfortunately, this is a VERY complex and difficult area of litigation - expensive and time consuming.

Good luck, though.

Tom Weiss

Re: custody

The information given with your question shows that both Michigan and Virginia law is involved. That is probebly not correct and the first thing you have to do is contact an attorey in one or the other state to see whose law applies. You have a reply from a Michigan Lawyer, reflecting what a Michigan court must consider in these matters. Virginia, also requires courts to consider a number of matters. They are:

1. The age and physical and mental condition of the child, giving due consideration to the child's changing developmental needs;

2. The age and physical and mental condition of each parent;

3. The relationship existing between each parent and each child, giving due consideration to the positive involvement with the child's life, the ability to accurately assess and meet the emotional, intellectual and physical needs of the child;

4. The needs of the child, giving due consideration to other important relationships of the child, including but not limited to siblings, peers and extended family members;

5. The role which each parent has played and will play in the future, in the upbringing and care of the child;

6. The propensity of each parent to actively support the child's contact and relationship with the other parent, including whether a parent has unreasonably denied the other parent access to or visitation with the child;

7. The relative willingness and demonstrated ability of each parent to maintain a close and continuing relationship with the child, and the ability of each parent to cooperate in and resolve disputes regarding matters affecting the child;

8. The reasonable preference of the child, if the court deems the child to be of reasonable intelligence, understanding, age and experience to express such a preference;

9. Any history of family abuse as that term is defined in � 16.1-228; and

10. Such other factors as the court deems necessary and proper to the determination.

Good luck.