Family Law | Parenting Arrangements
Information & FAQs
A parenting plan is an agreement between two parties made without the assistance or endorsement of a court. Parenting plans are not legally enforceable, but can become legally binding if they are written and submitted to a court for endorsement. Once endorsed, the parenting plan becomes a parenting order. If parties disagree on elements in a parenting plan, they can seek a parenting order from a court.
Our solicitors prepare parenting plans and seek parenting orders, determining:
- Physical custody (the child's time);
- legal custody (decision-making authority);
- financial support obligations;
- communication between parents; and
- dispute resolution procedures.
If you're in the midst of a divorce or separation, you may be considering ways to optimise your relationship with your children. You may be thinking about how to structure time with your kids so that everyone is happy and healthy.
If you have children together and aren't married, you'll need to decide on arrangements for custody and visitation. This can be done informally or through court orders. Even if parents are married but living apart from each other or one parent has moved out of state or out of country (or even if there's just one parent), it's important for parents to come up with a plan for their kids' caretaking arrangements.