Question:
My wife is having an affair. Will impact how the court decides custody of our kids?
Answer:
Please be advised that I am barred in Pennsylvania and will answer your question based on my experience in Pennsylvania.
In this state, the court generally does not consider a party’s extramarital affair in custody matters, unless the paramour poses a threat of harm to the children (i.e. has a criminal history, abuses drugs or exhibits violent behavior around the children, etc.).
However, facts such as the opposing party leaving the children unsupervised, and engaging in parental alienation are relevant to determining the best interests of the child in this state, among other factors, such as the ability of the parents to co-parent, past or present drug or alcohol abuse, history of physical abuse, the mental health of the parties, etc.
You should keep a calendar or journal and document informally each incident in your custody case in preparation for litigation; you should also save copies of all e-mails and texts with the opposing party.
Depending on the circumstances, you may also want to call the police. In Pennsylvania, the court will generally speak to the children directly, so information such as the children being placed in the middle will generally be relayed from the children themselves.
To arrange an initial consultation to discuss divorce rights for men with a Cordell & Cordell attorney, including Pennsylvania divorce lawyer Jaimie Collins, contact Cordell & Cordell.
