Do you need a Rhode Island Visitation Lawyer?

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Rhode Island has visitation guidelines that set forth a minimum amount of parenting time each parent will enjoy with a child.  Rhode Island has two kinds of custody: legal custody and physical custody. The parent who does not have physical custody of the child is entitled to visitation or “parenting time.” “Parenting time” generally refers to the time each parent spends with the child each week or in a designated period of time and this is different than the child custody.  Our Rhode Island Visitation Attorneys have extensive experience and can provide you with the legal advice you need to effectively guide you through the legal process and the Rhode Island Family Court system smoothly to achieve a favorable outcome.  Oftentimes, these types of custody legal issues arise as part of the divorce process.

In almost all cases, except where one parent’s parental rights have been terminated, each parent has visitation rights and is entitled to parenting time with his or her child, regardless of the status of custody.  Whether one party has sole custody or there is a joint custody agreement in place, a skilled and experienced Family Law Attorney can help you navigate the Rhode Island Family Court, protect your parental rights, and negotiate a comprehensive visitation agreement.

Though visitation is closely tied child custody law, there are many factors that determine the visitation schedule of a child in the Family Court.

The visitation schedule determines the amount of time the non-custodial parent may spend with the child, holiday and vacation schedules and the circumstances concerning visitation as well as who has physical custody and legal custody of the minor child.  This is sometimes referred to as a parenting plan.

The factors that the Rhode Island Family Court Judge will take into account are: 

  • Which parent the child has stronger emotional ties with;
  • Which parent has legal custody;
  • Which parent has physical custody;
  • The mental and Physical well being of parents;
  • The parent’s financial situations;
  • The parent the child prefers more;
  • The wishes of the parents;
  • Allegations of domestic violence.

In some cases, a visitation arrangement may need to be altered through a custody modification.  Custody issues can arise when there are questions about physical health or moral fitness of the noncustodial parent. If there is a child custody dispute involving visitation matters, a guardian ad litem may be appointed to the child in order to independently investigate any issues or claims that have arisen and help the family court make appropriate child custody decisions. At Braatz Family Law, we can provide this Rhode Island legal representation for you and settle visitation disagreements by bringing the custodial parents together to put in place a child custody agreement. Contact Braatz Family to speak with a top rated child custody attorney today at (401) 440-1171 to schedule a complimentary consultation and discuss your legal matters.

Here are a few of the most common questions your child custody lawyers can give you legal counsel on once you have retained them.

Q: What does reasonable visitation look like with my child’s other parent?

Q: I need help getting and enforcing supervised visitation for my child’s other parent, what are my options and how can a child custody attorney help?

Q: My child’s other parent and I have an agreement on what we feel visitation should look like, will the court allow us to agree upon this?  Does the family court make up their own child custody arrangements?

Q: I feel that my holiday and vacation visitation is not equitable, how can I make changes to this?

Q: My former spouse was abusive towards me and the children, how can I prevent this from happening during visitation with my child?

Q: One of the grandparents of my child is requesting visitation, do they have legal standing to do this?