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Child custody for teenagers should be flexible

On Behalf of | Apr 27, 2018 | Child Custody & Parenting Time

Child custody cases have to take the child’s age and maturity level into account. When you are dealing with a teenager, you likely need to have a more flexible agreement. Many teens are socially active, have school events and may have extracurricular activities. These don’t always work with a rigid schedule.

When you and your ex are deciding how to handle matters for the custody order, you might need to talk with your teenage child. It is important to find a way to balance out the need for the teen to have family time and an active life. We understand that this can make the situation much more difficult for you.

Sometimes, it might be better for parents to get the teen’s schedule first and then plan the time with each parent around those. This could help each parent to get involved with certain aspects of the child’s life. For example, if your daughter is on a competitive dance team and a softball team, one parent might handle dance and the other parent handles softball.

Because each case is different, parents must think about their children individually. Trying to follow a model that worked for someone else might lead to frustration in your case.

Another issue that can come up is when you have children in a range of ages. You may need to create a different custody plan for each child, which means that there might be times when one parent only has some children and the other parent has the others. The important thing to remember is that as long as your children are thriving and the arrangement works for your family, you can likely leave it in place.

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