You love your children, but you don’t love their father. It was hard deciding to break out of this marriage, because you knew it would affect your kids. The truth was, though, that you just weren’t a good match, and there were many problems that you needed to make sure you took your children away from.
When you don’t trust your spouse around your children for any reason, it’s important that you do fight for custody. Whether you fight for sole custody or want to make sure that visitation dates have supervision, those are things that your attorney can help you with during your divorce.
The reality is that some parents simply don’t do all they should to protect their children. As a parent who wants to make sure your children are safe, you can ask for supervised visitation or to completely remove the other parent from your children’s lives. Keep in mind that the court may not be in favor of stopping visitation completely, because in the majority of cases, both parents can play a positive role in their children’s lives despite disputes or other problems.
What do you need to do if you want to seek supervised visitation from the court?
If you want to argue for supervised visitation, then you need to have back-up to support your reasoning. For example, you may want to submit:
- Supporting documents showing that domestic violence took place from a parent against the other
- Any indication of abuse or neglect by the parent whom you’d like to have supervised
- Any information about the other parent’s struggles with substance abuse or mental health concerns
- Your preferences for a safe site for visitation, such as in a public place with another person you trust nearby
The judge will carefully consider the ability of either parent to provide a nonabusive, healthy environment for their children. If you can show that the other parent’s home is dangerous, that they’ve been negligent or that there are other safety concerns, then you may have a good opportunity to seek supervised visitation or sole custody.
There are many factors that play a role in a judge’s custody decisions. From the age and needs of a child to the relationship they have with their parents, all of these factors have to be considered before a custody plan can be made. If you can’t agree to a plan outside court, you can argue for your preferences before a judge.
