Family law attorneys believe that for any co-parenting plan to succeed, there must be an effective and balanced parenting agreement behind it.
The critical word in this is “agreement,” which involves not the attorneys or the court telling parents how to conduct themselves, but rather the parents willingly working together to accomplish a workable plan that addresses everyone’s needs.
These family law firm tips outline some ideas that can help parents find the balance required to come up with a co-parenting plan that serves both them and their children.
Cooperation, Flexibility, and Creativity Are Essential
Regardless of any other planning that is done between parents, attorneys find that cooperation and flexibility are the two elements that will go the furthest for them.
Work and life responsibilities change and sometimes it becomes difficult to stick to pre-arranged schedules without any flexibility.
Parents who can flex where needed and come up with creative solutions to scheduling and other parenting challenges will go far in promoting good relationships and the ability for both parents to work together on co-parenting.
Above all, parents should never withhold visitation as a means of expressing annoyance with the other parent; if there are problems that they cannot work out between them, they should remain as cooperative as possible while discussing it with an attorney.
Consider Following Common Custody Arrangements
A good place that law firms recommend parents start when developing a balanced parenting agreement is to base it on one of many commonly used custody schedules.
Popular arrangements include the 50/50 schedule of alternating full weeks, the 2-2-3 weekly split or the 3-4-4-3 or 2-2-5-5 bi-weekly split, all of which provide equal time to both parents each month.
Additionally, in situations where one parent has less availability or is entitled to less visitation, family law attorneys can assist in the planning of 60/40 or 70/30 time splits as needed.
Using these plans as a starting point, agreeable and flexible parents can make modifications as required to accommodate their own or their child’s specific needs.
Involve Children In The Planning
As kids start to grow up and have their own busy schedules filled with events and activities, attorneys see that involving them in visitation planning becomes essential.
Including children in the planning of parenting schedules offers the easiest way to consider the child’s needs while preventing stressful scheduling miscommunications and ensuring each parent still gets the time they are entitled to.
Stay Connected And Communicative
Law firms recommend that parents trying to co-parent smoothly stay well-connected while remaining flexible and understanding.
Good communication is essential to avoid disagreements and keep everyone working together.
A great way to make remembering schedules easier without unnecessary back-and-forth texting and the potential for miscommunication is by using a scheduling app.
Family law attorneys recommend that parents use any of several co-parenting apps available today to create a parenting hub where communications, schedules, and other notes can be contained to create balanced, flexible, and workable co-parenting agreements.
A Family Law Attorney Can Help With Co-Parenting Ideas
Good balance in a parenting agreement is important to ensure that parents and children can maintain positive relationships in a co-parenting situation.
Experienced attorneys who have helped many clients work through this process can help.
Whether parents just need a bit of guidance on how to start forming their parenting agreement or require some experienced advice to resolve a problem, a caring family law attorney will have some creative, problem-solving solutions that promote fair co-parenting.
A respected family law firm can provide the co-parenting help that local parents need to keep things positive!
