Because of the logistics and because of Louisiana law, it can be difficult for both parents who live far from each other to receive equal rights from the court outside of a consent judgment. This article explains this further.
Child custody battles are never easy, even for a divorce lawyer. Oftentimes they involve high-tempered emotions and personal disputes. Here in Louisiana, the family court system has a specific set of rules and guidelines that they can follow to make sure the child is placed in the best home for his or her needs.
One of the most common sources of judicial authority on this issue is in article 134 of the Louisiana Civil Code. Article 134 lays out twelve different factors that a court can and should consider when awarding custody to a parent. One little know yet still highly relevant factor under Article 134 is section 11, which reads that a court should consider: “The distance between the respective residences of the parties” when awarding custody of the child.
Some people hear this and they can’t believe it. They protest to their divorce lawyer, “What does the distance between a loving mother and father have to do with how equally they can see their son or daughter?”
Well I am here to tell you that the first interest of a Louisiana family court will always be “what’s in the best interests of the child.” Sometimes this means that parents and their desires vis a vis their child have to take a back seat to what is going to be best for their little Jack or Judy.
For example, let’s say we have two children, Jack and Judy. They are both getting ready to enter the fifth grade. Their parents hired a divorce lawyer to end their marriage recently, and their father moved from New Orleans (where their home was) all the way up to Shreveport, Louisiana, which is about six hours away.
If the father demands to see the children as regularly as the mother (and let’s say for the sake of example the mother has already been named the custodial parent), he is unlikely to get his way.
One simple reason is just that he lives to far away! All other things being completely equal: both parents are loving and supportive, financially and emotionally secure, etc., then a court may look elsewhere in determining how best to affix custody. In our hypothetical case above, it would be extremely difficult for the children to see their father for fifty percent of the month, because he lives so far away. Additionally, they have school and community attachments in New Orleans that would no doubt suffer if they were forced regularly to travel to Shreveport.
Of course the father in our example is entitled to see his children, assuming there are not some other extraordinary circumstances. But the easiest thing he can do for his divorce lawyer to ensure he will see his children more regularly is move back to New Orleans. This is because a Louisiana family court would more likely grant him greater leeway in seeing the children, as opposed to when he is living six hours away in Shreveport.
This article is written with the sole intention of providing information. It is not legal advice. Will Beaumont is a divorce lawyer in New Orleans, La.
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