Massachusetts Child Custody Lawyer

60/40 child custody refers to the breakdown in parenting time. The parent with 60% of the parenting time will usually be considered the primary care parent. This becomes an issue in child support because although there’s a unique calculation for shared physical custody (50/50), the standard calculation is used for 60/40, which may not be fair as 40% of parenting time is a significant amount. However, the judge can deviate from the suggested child support amount if necessary to arrive at a fair amount.

You may have to pay child support even if you have joint custody. When parenting time is approximately equal between parents (50/50), the courts use what’s called a “cross-guidelines” calculation for child support. Essentially they calculate child support once with one parent as the primary caretaker, then the other, then subtract the lower result from the higher, and that’s typically the amount that the higher earner has to pay the other. A child support calculator will automatically do this math when the option for shared physical custody is chosen.

70/30 child custody refers to the percentage of parenting time breakdown between the parties, in which the primary care parent has the child 70% of the time, and the other parent 30%. This parenting time breakdown typically results in a “full guidelines” child support amount, which is generally ordered on cases in which the parenting time is roughly 2/3 to 1/3.

In many cases, it happens to be that the mother has been the primary caretaker of the children and therefore, it’s in the best interest of the children that she continue in that role. However, the courts are increasingly willing to grant fathers shared and even full custody. The courts must focus on what’s in the best interest of the child and the gender of the parents is not a factor in that analysis.

There’s no mechanism I know of to measure this statistic. However, father’s are more likely than ever before to gain custody of a child. First, courts are obligated to do what’s in the best interest of the child regardless of the parent’s gender. So if a father is the best fit to be the primary care parent, the courts are increasingly likely to order that. In the last few decades, women have been increasingly more productive in the workforce, and there are fewer families in which the mother is solely dedicated to caring for the children as was very common in the past. Therefore, the percentage of fathers who have custody seems to be on the rise.

Kidnapping in MA is a crime, and technically, it’s keeping someone or forcing the person to go somewhere against the person’s will. So there can be kidnapping with or without a custody order. A different, but related issue is when a parent wants to move out of state with a child, which is “removal,” and is discussed below.

Police officers generally try to stay out of family law disputes. If a crime is being committed by one of the parents, the officer can take action. However, when there are disagreements about parenting time and related issues, the officer will usually tell the parties that they must address the issue in family court.

A parent generally cannot permanently remove a child out of state without either a court order or consent of the other parent. If that issue is raised, the court will determine whether removal out-of-state is in the best interest of the child. If there’s shared custody, it’s generally more difficult for the moving parent to convince a court that the child should move.

There are two types. Legal custody determines which parent makes the major decisions for a child: health care, schooling, religion, etc. It’s generally shared between the parents unless there’s a significant issue with one of the parents or there’s a complete breakdown in communication that would negatively impact the child. Physical custody goes to the parent with whom the child lives. There may be sole or shared custody depending on the circumstances.

There are two types of custody. 1. Legal custody, which dictates who makes the major decisions such as medical, schooling, etc., and 2. Physical custody: the child’s living arrangement. You officially have full custody of your child when a court order to that effect is issued, which happens either by agreement of the parties or after hearing. If there’s an emergency, the court will hold a hearing within a few days of filing, if not, usually within 3-8 weeks.

You would have to file the necessary documents including a complaint and a motion for temporary orders at the Probate and Family Court. A hearing date is scheduled at which point the custody issue is addressed.

The judge will consider a number of factors including who the primary caretaker of the child has been, the child’s relationship with each parent, mental health or substance abuse issues with either parent and minimizing disruption, among other factors. Also, if the child is older (usually about 14) the court may take into account the child’s preference. The judge’s goal by law is to do what’s in the “best interest” of the child.

Yes, a custody agreement can be changed either by agreement of the parents or if there’s a “material change in circumstance” – a significant change since the last order – warranting a change in custody, either party may file a complaint about modification of custody.

You should ask whether the attorney’s practice focuses on family law and custody issues, what the attorney’s philosophy is in family law cases, and how the attorney proposes to handle your particular case.

In a recent custody case, the parties had been separated for some time. I represented the father. He was very involved in his daughter’s life, but the mother was constantly changing his visitation schedule at her whim and punishing him by withholding visitation. We filed a complaint, litigated, and obtained a very generous visitation schedule for the father.