If you currently have a court-ordered parenting plan but it’s no longer working, you may want to consider modifying the parenting plan. However, it’s important to keep in mind there are limitations to how and when a parenting plan can be modified. By statute, the Court may modify a parenting plan when it is in the children’s best interests. However, if one party is asking for a change that is substantial enough to change the party who the child lives with the majority of the time, the Court can modify parenting time if one of the following is met:
– The parties agree to the change
– The child has been integrated into the family of the moving party with the consent of the other party
– The party who the child resides with the majority of the time is relocating
– The current circumstances endanger the child’s physical safety or significantly impair the child’s emotional development and the harm from the change is outweighed by the advantage of the change
It is also important to know that once a party files for a modification of parenting time, another motion cannot be filed for at least two years unless the current circumstances endanger the child’s physical safety, significantly impair the child’s emotional development or the parent who the child lives with the majority of the time is relocating.
If you have any questions about your current parenting plan or need to learn more about modifying a parenting plan, please contact me to schedule a free, 30-minute consultation.