When Holiday Child Custody Agreements Aren’t Working – What Are Your Rights?
Child custody agreements address parents’ visitation rights during holidays. Courts know the value in extended child custody with children when school isn’t in session. If your ex is constantly violating your holiday child custody agreement, or you would wish to modify the agreement, now is the time to discuss with an Ontario attorney to see what can be done about your case.
What to do when Holiday Child Custody Agreements aren’t working?
Once a child custody agreement has been agreed between the two parents and the court, unfortunately it isn’t always followed by. Many people wonder what their rights are when the other parent violates the child custody agreement. If the other parent has not abided the court-ordered child custody agreement, many things can be done.
Communicate with Your Child’s Other Parent
After a custody order infraction, the first step would be to communicate with your child’s other parent about the violation. In case your ex isn’t cooperating with the child custody agreement, make sure at your disposal you’ve tried everything. Legally, you possess the right to keep your child with you when you and your ex agreed to it as per your parenting schedule.
File a Police Report
Although this isn’t an optimal solution and would be a last resort however, you could call the police to enforce the agreement. Before this occurs, you want to be sure you’ve tried to communicate with them openly. We highly recommend maintaining ties with your family law attorney so that you can consult with them when matters like this arise.
Enforce Your Rights in Court
You can also fight for this in court by filing a motion to enforce litigant’s rights in family court. You’ll be asking the court to enforce the child custody agreement and impose penalties on the party failing to abide by, including, if appropriate, monetary sanctions.
Call your family attorney’s office in Ontario to discuss what your best options are in the midst of the holiday as well as afterward to avoid this occurring again.
Related: Child Support Calculator for Ontario
Seeking a Modification of Your Agreement
Sometimes, parents have ongoing complications or may repeatedly disagree relating to vacation plans. In this scenario, it may be worth it to modify your holiday custody agreement. If the parents can agree, they must submit the modification to the court that issued the initial parenting plan.
If a parent disagrees with the modification, the parent looking for the changes must petition the court. There are strict standards for getting a modification, so you want the assistance of an expert family attorney from the start of the process. Always speak with a skilled lawyer in Ontario who can review your custody order and help you find a suitable resolution.
Contact Our Family Lawyers
The skilled and experienced family lawyers at Fine & Associates Professional Corporation can help you identify your options and negotiate a resolution to your holiday child custody matter. We have extensive experience helping our clients reach fair and amicable solutions to all of their parenting matters, including parenting time and child support. Contact us at (416) 650-1300 to schedule a consultation.