Legal Question in Family Law in Washington

Re: Parenting Plan

You should initially write a letter, pointing out to your former spouse that the parenting plan is a court order and he is liable for contempt if he does not comply with it. You may want to bring an attorney in if he does not make a useful response to your letter. If you want to change the parenting plan you may want to propose that as an option to him that would bring his actions in conformity with the agreed modification of the plan.

Re: Parenting Plan

Your best bet is to hire an attorney to write your ex-husband a letter informing him that if he continues to willfully ignore his duties under the parenting plan, that you will have no choice but to seek a modification based upon his lack of exercising visitation. Also, given his lack of visitation, I'd remind him that you may seek a modification of the current order of child support as well, considering that you have the children for periods of time you did not count on and must feed and otherwise pay for costs associated with them.

Usually, getting this news in a letter from a lawyer has a serious way of jolting someone to comply who just needs a little motivation. If he is otherwise determined not to comply, then it matters not who writes to him. You have only two choices left: either live with things as they are or move ahead with court action.

Is parenting plan an order signed by the court?

Is your parenting plan an order signed by the court? Or, is it simply something that you two agreed with each other without involvement from the court?

If the parenting plan is not a court order, there is nothing to enforce. If you want an enforceable parenting plan, you will need a court order.

If it is an order by the court, you can ask the court to enforce or change the order.

On the other hands, some mothers do not appear to be interested in the fathers to be involved in the children's lives and would not bother getting the court to enforce or change the parenting plan.

You should review your options with an attorney.