Arizona Family Courts make their decisions in the best interests of children in all cases. This is particularly important in critical decisions like with whom a child resides, and which parent has legal decision-making authority for the child’s medical care and education after a divorce or when unmarried parents share a child. In Arizona, judges begin with the presumption that continued close contact with both parents is what’s in a child’s best interest; however, this is a rebuttable presumption, meaning a parent can give testimony and show evidence why continued close contact with the other parent is not in their child’s best interest. A parent seeking sole custody must show the court why it is best for their child during all Phoenix child custody lawsuits.
What Is Sole Custody?
Updates to Arizona’s family court guidelines in 2013 changed some commonly used terms, including changing “child custody” to “parenting time.” Parenting time describes the plan two parents have in place for sharing their children either after a divorce or between non-married parents who share a child. When a parent seeks sole custody in Arizona, they are typically requesting that their child live with them and that they are the parent who makes major decisions for the child. Sole custody means one parent has sole decision-making custody of the child. Sole custody combined with sole physical custody means one parent has full custody of the child instead of a shared parenting time plan. Depending on the circumstances of the case, the other parent could have supervised or unsupervised visitation rights.
Parents may agree on one parent’s sole custody of their children and take the agreement to a judge to sign into orders or—more often—they disagree heatedly on this issue and take the matter to court to present their arguments for a judge to decide.
How Can a Parent Get Sole Custody?
Sometimes negative circumstances make shared custody a danger to a child’s physical or emotional well-being. When this is the case, a parent may seek sole custody of their child so the child lives with them and they have full decision-making authority over the child. A parent may also seek sole custody for legal decision-making for their child while agreeing to shared physical custody or visitation through a parenting time plan.
When a parent seeks sole custody and the other parent agrees, they must draw up a well-executed plan to submit to the court. The plan must include compelling reasons that shared custody isn’t in the child’s best interests in order for a judge to sign the agreement into final orders.
If the other parent doesn’t agree to allow their spouse sole custody, the parents must take the matter before a judge in a custody trial. At the trial, the parent requesting sole custody must show evidence and give compelling testimony as to why sole custody is in their child’s best interests.
What Do Courts Consider When Making Custody Decisions?
A parent must present a strong case to a judge, showing why their desired outcome for their parenting time plan or sole custody of their child is in the child’s best interest. Judges in Arizona consider many factors when making child custody decisions with an emphasis on the following:
- Each parent’s relationship with the child and their typical daily interactions
- The physical, mental, and emotional health of each parent and the children
- Any history of neglect, abuse, or domestic violence
- The willingness of each parent to facilitate contact between the children and the other parent to support a continued close relationship
- The child’s ties to their community, extended family members, and school
- Each parent’s honesty and transparency when presenting evidence and testimony to the court
- Whether or not coercion took place or one parent was under duress when making a parenting plan
When a parent seeks sole custody, they must present strong evidence of why it’s in their child’s best interest. For instance, by demonstrating their close relationship with their child, that they are the child’s primary caregiver, and that it isn’t in the child’s best interest for their other parent to share physical custody, decision-making authority, or both.
When Does a Judge Grant Sole Custody?
Because courts consider shared parenting time as the ideal, achieving a sole custody decision requires persuasive evidence that sharing custody with the other parent isn’t appropriate because it would endanger the child’s physical or mental health. Proving any of the following could demonstrate to a judge that one parent’s sole custody is in the best interests of the child:
- The other parent has a history of domestic violence
- The other parent has a history of child abuse or neglect
- The other parent suffers from chronic addiction or alcoholism
- The other parent’s incarceration or serious criminal history
- The other parent has mental problems that make them a danger to the children’s safety or emotional well-being
To gain sole child custody, it’s necessary to persuasively show that spending time with the other parent is not in the child’s best interest.
Requesting a Modification of an Existing Child Custody Order
In some cases, a parent can request a post-judgment modification or a change of the current custody order. When there’s been a significant alteration in circumstances, a parent requesting sole custody may request a modification and present evidence and testimony to the court to support their request for a change from shared parenting time and decision-making authority to sole child custody.
How Can a Child Custody Attorney Help?
Obtaining sole custody of children isn’t easy in a court that begins with the presumption that continued close contact with both parents is what’s best for a child. Unless a spouse or unmarried co-parent doesn’t want custody and willingly signs a parenting-time plan and legal custody agreement drafted by an experienced attorney in a manner that’s acceptable to the judge, the parent seeking sole custody must make a strong case in court. An experienced child custody attorney can guide you through the process and provide essential legal counsel for the most compelling case possible to present to the judge.
Call the Arizona child custody lawyers at Stewart Law Group today so we can begin action to achieve your desired outcome for your family’s future.