We can all agree that life is a little different than normal right now. It has impacted aspects of our lives including: school, work and even trips to the grocery store. Healthcare professionals have deemed the best way to stop the spread of COVID-19, also known as the Coronavirus, is through social distancing. Many of us are going on two months of isolation and minimal physical contact with family or friends.
For some families, creating a social distancing plan may be a walk in the park. For divorced or separated parents this may be a bit more challenging. It’s important to keep everyone healthy, but it’s also important for your children to get adequate time with each parent – not just their custodial parent.
COVID-19 and Custody Arrangements
Contrary to what you may believe, the social distancing order does not affect custody arrangements. The original custody order should still be being followed unless the custodial and non-custodial parents come to a mutual agreement on an alternative plan or a judge changes the order. It has been made very clear by the courts that they will not be tolerating anyone who denies visitation. Doing so could result in contempt of court and sanctions.
However, if you have valid concerns there may be a temporary change in custody arrangements. These concerns include:
● Your ex has been exposed to someone who has a confirmed case of COVID-19
● Your ex has shown symptoms of COVID-19
● Your child is in the high-risk category for COVID-19
● Your ex has a high-risk job and is frequently exposed to COVID-19
What to Do
If you firmly believe that sending your child to your ex’s house is posing a risk to their health, you can have a proactive conversation with them about a temporary change to your original custody plan. It’s important for your ex to remain active in your child’s life during this scary time, so if you do temporarily change your custody plan then consider alternative communication methods like:
● Setting up daily phone calls, FaceTime or Zoom chats between your child and ex.
● Have your child create letters, pictures or send text messages to your ex.
● Reschedule your temporarily postponed visits and make them up at a later date.
As parents, your main priority is the health and wellbeing of your child. But if the two of you cannot come to an agreement then you should contact the experienced team at Sport Law. We are currently in uncharted waters and there’s no universal law in place on how separated parents should deal with a pandemic of this sort.