McLean Child Custody Attorney

Compassionate Counsel for Families in the Washington, D.C. Area

Whether a child support and custody case is the only family law issue you’re navigating, or you’re dealing with several disputes at once in a divorce, you need an attorney you can rely on. At G. Best Husband Law, we are committed to shielding the children involved in family law cases from the trauma of this difficult process. We work closely with our clients to ensure that matters proceed as smoothly as possible, striving to ensure that their children have the physical, mental, and emotional support they need in order to thrive in the long term. Whether you’re fighting for legal and physical custody, or you need to assert your right to visitation, our child custody lawyer in McLean offers the personal, responsive legal services that can make a difference.

Put our years of family law experience to work for you. Call (844) 749-8933 or contact us online today to schedule your consultation.

Legal & Physical Custody Arrangements in Virginia

In cases of fully joint custody, both parents have a say in major decisions for a child’s schooling, religious upbringing, medical treatment, and the like (this is legal custody), and both parents would each provide a place of residence (physical custody). If the child takes turns residing with both parents in a joint custody arrangement, it doesn’t automatically mean that they will split their time equally between both parents, however. For instance, instead of switching off each week, one parent might provide the weekend home for the child, while the other parent has the child every weekday.

While it is possible for a court to award one parent sole physical custody, it is not common for a parent to have sole legal custody. Even so, Virginia is clear in its laws on custody that a judge is not allowed to enter a case with the presumption that joint custody is likely in the child’s best interests. A judge is supposed to look at each case without any preconceived notions and to consider each case’s unique factors to determine what is best for each child.

Determining a Child’s Best Interests in a Custody Case

Ideally, this decision will not be left up to a family judge, who has precious little time to get to understand your unique child and their relationships with each parent. Ideally, parents will be able to agree to a co-parenting plan together, and a judge will simply sign off on the plan because it already fits the criteria for a child’s best interests. Whether a family court needs to decide between adversarial parents, or a judge is simply reviewing a custody arrangement agreed on by the parents, the criteria are the same.

Some of the factors that may be considered in a child custody arrangement include:

• Age of each child
• Age and health of each parent
• The role and relationship of each parent in their child’s life
• How well each parent supports the other (such as not bad-mouthing one another, or being sure to involve the other parent in the child’s life)
• How committed each parent is to developing their relationship with their child
• The wishes of the child (depending on their age)
• Whether there has been any form of family abuse or child abuse

Other considerations include the child’s needs outside of their parental relationships, such as sibling relationships, their school and classmates, their closeness to grandparents and other extended family relationships, etc.

Child Custody Modification

Virginia family courts realize that circumstances can change significantly, to the degree that a current child custody order is no longer serving the child’s best interests. In such cases, it is crucial to talk with a family law attorney right away about modifying your custody orders. Whether a child is avoiding a parent, or one parent is withholding custody, it is possible to be charged with contempt of court for breaching the court-ordered custody order.

Request Your Family Law Consultation 

When your child’s future is on the line, you shouldn’t be left with lingering questions and worries. At G. Best Husband Law, we are ready to review the specifics of your case, address your concerns, and help you craft a dynamic legal strategy. Our mission is to help you protect your loved ones at every stage of this difficult process, and to help you come out the other side well-prepared to move into a stronger tomorrow.

Send us a message online or call (844) 749-8933 today to start talking with a child custody lawyer in McLean, VA. Ask about our flat fee rate and payment plan.