Question:
We are attempting to work through child custody agreements in mediation, but my wife will not give me more than every other weekend and some summer vacation time.
I want to have more parenting time with my daughter, but I’m not sure what to do if my wife won’t give it to me.
What should I do to get extra visitation?
Answer:
Please note that I am not licensed in your state so I am unable to provide legal advice on divorce.
Your visitation or parenting time schedule is not contingent on “what your wife will give you.” What matters is what a judge will give you, or, for purposes of mediation, what the mediator can get the two of you to agree on.
Stand firm on your desire to have extra visitation with your daughter. You do not have to agree with your wife’s parenting time proposal if you don’t want to.
There is no hard and fast rule or structure that pertains to visitation schedules – it can differ from case to case. It all depends on the amount of time each parent wants to spend with the child, and how that can be accommodated into each parent’s schedule.
Parenting time of every other weekend, some summer vacation and a split of holidays might work for some parents, but in your case, it doesn’t work for you.
So don’t let your wife bully you or make you believe that she has any more say about it than you do.
If you can’t get her to agree to extra visitation, then make the Judge decide. You have just as much right to spend time with your child as she does.
If you need legal advice on divorce, or wish to take specific action in this matter, you need to contact an attorney immediately for assistance. Cordell & Cordell does represent clients nationwide.
To schedule an appointment with a Cordell & Cordell attorney, including Tamara Hoffstatter, an attorney in the Troy, Michigan, office of Cordell & Cordell, please contact Cordell & Cordell.
