Child custody battles are heart-wrenching. When you become a parent, you make a lifelong commitment to protect, love, and show up for your child every day. And now that’s being threatened. Your rights and parental responsibilities are being questioned, and your relationship with your child hangs in the balance. At Martine Law, we’ve seen firsthand how heated child custody battles can get. Our Minneapolis child custody lawyer is dedicated to guarding your parental rights and keeping your family together. Contact us today.

There are Two Types of Parental Custody in Minnesota

Under Minnesota family law, there are two types of custody: legal and physical.

  1. Legal Custody – the right to make important decisions about the child’s life, including healthcare and education.
  2. Physical Custody – the right to make significant decisions about where the child lives, and their day-to-day activities

Either type of custody can be given solely to one parent or shared.

Determinations of custody and parenting time rights often happen when parents divorce, unmarried parents file a custody case, when determining paternity, domestic abuse cases, or when the child is involved in a Child In Need of Protection Services (CHIPS) case.

Regardless of what triggered your custody case, when it’s your child’s well-being in the balance, you need a qualified family law attorney to help you win your case.

How Minnesota Family Law Courts Decide on Child Custody Cases

When parents can not agree on a custody arrangement among themselves, local family court judges can decide on the matter. To do so, judges consider the following child custody factors.

  1. The child’s physical, emotional, cultural, and spiritual needs and how either arrangement will affect those needs and the child’s development
  2. Special medical, developmental, or educational needs of the child require a special parenting arrangement.
  3. The child’s preference, depending on their age, maturity, and ability to express independent judgment.
  4. Whether domestic abuse has occurred in the household or parental relationship, and its implications on the child’s well-being
  5. Any physical, chemical, or mental health issues of either parent
  6. Each parent’s history of participation in the child’s life
  7. The willingness and ability of each parent to meet the child’s needs and maintain consistency
  8. How changing homes, communities, and schools may affect the child’s well-being.
  9. How either arrangement will affect the child’s relationship with the other parent, siblings, or other people in the child’s life
  10. The pros and cons of limiting or maximizing time with either parent
  11. Each parent’s attitude toward supporting the child’s relationship with the other parent and encouraging contact (except in cases of domestic abuse)
  12. The willingness of each parent to cooperate in raising the child and minimizing conflict

When ruling on child custody matters, a family court judge will always have the child’s best interests in mind.

Our Minneapolis child custody lawyers can ensure that your custody case is presented well – giving you the best shot at keeping your family intact.

Factors to Consider in a Family Law Custody Case

There may be more to your child custody case than meets the eye. Often, these cases trigger other legal disputes like child support and parenting time rights. Here’s what to look for…

Child Support

In a child custody case, parents with sole physical custody of the child(ren) may ask for financial support from the other parent. Child support payments can be mandated by the court and are calculated by determining the costs of basic care (housing, transportation, food, etc.), child care, and medical care. You can find out how much child support you may be entitled to by using Minnesota’s Child Support Guidelines Calculator.

Parenting Time

Parenting time, also called visitation, may be awarded in a child custody case in which one parent is given primary physical custody of the child. If both parents can agree on a schedule, it will be reviewed by the court and added to the custody agreement.

If not, the judge will decide on a parenting schedule that awards the non-custodial parent at least 25% of the child’s time. In situations where the court deems that child is unsafe in the non-custodial parent’s care, the judge may require supervised visitations.

Contact a Child Custody Lawyer in Minneapolis, MN Today

Custody cases are emotionally overwhelming, and they call for child custody lawyers. When your child’s well-being is on the line, please don’t leave it up to the courts to decide. Get legal representation.

Our Minnesota child custody attorneys can help your case by providing legal services like:

  • Developing a legal strategy
  • Organizing evidence
  • Pursuing sole custody or joint custody agreements
  • Pursuing child support payment
  • Acquiring visitation rights
  • Managing domestic violence cases
  • Protecting your parental rights

We put your family first at Martine Law. So contact us to find your Minnesota child custody attorney today.

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