If you are seeking a divorce in Waldorf, MD, and there are minor children from the marriage, then one of the decisions that will be made by the Maryland divorce court involves which parent (or parents) will be awarded custody of the children. In reality, this is not just one decision since there are two aspects of custody — physical and legal — and there is a range of options, including complete and sole custody, many forms of joint custody, and sole custody with visitation rights for the non-custodial parent. If you have questions about child custody, call us here at the Law Office of Robert Castro at (301) 870-1200 for a consultation. We are divorce attorneys in Waldorf, Maryland. We are top-rated, tough, relentless, and skilled.

In terms of what the Maryland divorce court considers when making child custody decisions, the court will look at the filing made in the divorce case. These include:

• The pleadings — in particular, the court is looking for allegations related to the fitness of the parents and what the parents have agreed to
• The parents’ joint parenting plan (or its absence or incompleteness)
• In some cases, the court will order a Child Custody Evaluation which is done by a neutral official from the Child Services Department involving interviews, home visits, psychological testing, and, ultimately, a report/recommendation

By law, the legal standard for making child custody decisions is called the “best interest of the child.” This means that custody decisions are made with respect to the child, not the parents. The various specific factors listed below are relevant to the question of what is in the best interest of the child. How the court balances the factors and comes to a decision depends on the unique circumstances of the case AND the unique circumstances related to each child (if there are more than one child of the marriage). In some cases, the best interest of the child involves having different children live primarily with different parents. In other cases, it might be best for the children to stay together in the primary care of one parent. In other cases, joint custody might be in the best interest of the child.

In any event, there is a long list of potential facts that a court considers. Generally, these include:

• Fitness of one parent or both parents
• Ability of one parent or the other to handle custody — this includes financial and emotional abilities and such things as time demands imposed by employment
• Desires of the parents — if one parent does not want custody, that is taken into account
• Agreements between the parents
• Maintaining continuity for the child or children
• Potential for maintaining family ties — with, for example, grandparents and other relatives
• Preferences of the child or children — if they are old enough
• Material factors that might affect the potential future life of the child, such as the lifestyle of each parent
• Age and health of parents
• Age and health of the child or children
• Where the parents live and proximity of the parent’s respective homes — and, thus, opportunities for visitation
• Where relevant, how long a child or children have been separated from a parent
• Emotional ties to one parent or the other
• Which parent has been the primary caregiver
• Whether either parent has any history of abandonment or surrender of the child or children

As complicated as this is, there are even more factors to be considered when a court considers awarding joint custody. Among these factors include whether the parents are able to reasonably and peacefully communicate, whether there is evidence that they can make shared decisions, whether visitation options are better, any benefit to the parents in a joint custody arrangement, and more.

Contact Waldorf, Maryland Family Law and Divorce Lawyer Robert Castro Today

This article has been provided by the Law Office of Robert Castro. For more information or questions, contact our office to speak to an experienced Maryland family law and divorce lawyer at (301) 870-1200. We are Waldorf, MD, Divorce lawyers. Our address is 2670 Crain Highway, Waldorf, MD, 20601.