Divorce Maryland Custody

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Determination of the best interests of the child in Divorce Maryland Custody

The court takes into account several factors to determine the best interests of the child. It must be noted that no one factor has more importance as compared to the other. Some of these factors are as follows.

• The General Assembly passed a bill in 2009 that specifically restricted the significance of the disability of a party in a custody proceeding to an extent that the disability would hamper the best interests of the child
• How the religious views of the parent are impacting the emotional and physical well being of the child?
• In the past, have there been incidences that one parent walked out of the house and left the other parent to manage the child and the residence? If yes, which parent walked out?
• For what duration has one parent has been separated from the child?
• Do the father and mother reside close to each other? If yes, how close?
• Do the parents stay nearby to the members of the extended family of the child?
• Does the father or mother reside closest to the social circle and school of the child?
• The gender, health and age of the child
• Does the father or mother have more economical sources to offer more things to the child?
• The court does not wish to make the reversible mistake of not hearing the child's preference regarding custody. The court can use its discretion and interview the child in the absence of the parents. If the child is aged 10 to 12, it is eligible to make his/her opinions heard and be given importance to in the custody proceedings. If the child is aged 5 or 6 years, the capacity of the child to distinguish fiction from truth is the guideline that decides whether the child should be heard
• Which parent will not punish the child for the other parent's adverse action?
• Which parent is capable of maintaining the intactness of the child's family?
• Reputation and character of the parents
• Is there any proof of abuse by one parent against the other parent or any child who resides in the parent's household?
• The physical and psychological abilities of the spouses seeking custody
• If the child gets hurt, to which parent does he/she turn to?
• Which parent performs the following related to the child
  • Arranging day care
  • Bathing
  • Getting him/her ready for school
  • Shopping for clothes
  • Feeding

Shared Physical Custody

• The child has 2 residences and spends about 35 percent of the time with one parent

• The child has 1 primary residence
• Both the father and mother share the control of upbringing of the child

One of the possibilities is as follows.

• The child has 1 residence
• The parents stay at this residence with the child in a rotating arrangement

• If there are 2 children, each parent is awarded complete physical custody of one child

• Both physical and legal custody are awarded to 1 parent
• Physical custody means that the child resides primarily with this parent and this parent has the right to take decisions about the child's everyday requirements
• Legal custody implies the right to take decisions for the child's welfare
• The child has 1 primary residence

• It is enforced while the parents wait in the court for the completion of the hearing

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