Divorces and separation can be a lot more complicated if children are involved. Another factor of custody and visitation is introduced, which needs to be settled and solved between the two parties by themselves or by involving their divorce lawyers. Here is everything you need to know about joint child custody.
Pros Of Joint Child Custody
You Both Are Involved
One of the great things about joint or shared child custody is that both parents are involved in the life of the child. If the child is especially young and doesn’t have an idea of a marriage breaking, then it’s best to keep going with the custody like this.
As soon as the child reaches an age where understanding is developed, then you guys can split the custody and have the child decide who he/she wants to live with. It makes the separation process a bit easier to handle for the child.
Responsibilities Are Split
Joint child custody is a great way to split and share the responsibilities of the child. All of the burdens and responsibilities can be shared by both partners and one spouse will not be under pressure to make sure their child gets all needs met. This is a great way to co-parent a child if both partners have busy schedules and they want the other person to share the responsibilities of the child. It may even lead to you getting on friendly terms with your ex-spouse.
It’s More Stable For The Child
Even though joint custody doesn’t mean that the child and both parents live in the same house, they are still close to each other and it makes for a more stable household as opposed to not seeing one parent at all. Both parents are involved in the life and events of the child, even though they are separated.
Joint custody also shares a lot of the finances and it becomes easier to raise a child, especially if one partner is suffering financially. It’s definitely a good option if you don’t want to disturb the child’s momentum and have them distracted from their life.
Cons Of Joint Child Custody
Can Be Expensive With More Children
Joint child custody is easy when you have only one child. However, it becomes more of a financial strain when more kids are involved. It is more expensive to raise 3 to 4 children as compared to one and there is a lot of difficulty in keeping the rotation going from one parent’s home to another. If both of you are struggling and can’t afford to take care of the children separately, then joint custody will be hard and a better option is to give sole physical custody of all the children who is the better earning individual of the two.
Hard If Spouses Don’t Get Along
It’s one thing if both parents are still on friendly terms and it is a good environment for the child, but if the parents are volatile and not on good terms with each other, then it will be more of a bad idea to keep both volatile parties together.
This will strain the mental health of the child if he/she sees the parents constantly bickering or not getting along, especially if the child is young. It’s better to know the relationship of the parents after separation and the nature and reason of the divorce, before giving joint custody to the parents.
Hard To Match Schedules
A child’s life is full of small events which mean a lot to them, so if both parents are sharing custody of the child, it’s better to show up for these things and small milestones in the child’s life. But it can be hard for the parents to be free at the same time, and if one parent fails to show up because of some work-related commitment, then it doesn’t leave a good impression on the child. So, making schedules match and taking time out is a huge problem.
Conclusion
There you have it! Joint child custody can have its ups and downs and it is definitely an option if the partners are considering divorce or separation. If they don’t fight on every divorce point, they could work with cheap divorce lawyers Fairfax VA and save money for the future of their child.
