Early Child Custody Advice. Why You May Need It .

The demand for child custody advice has risen dramatically overthe last 40 years. The reason for this sharp increase forinformation is that more and more married couples are seekinglegal separation or divorce. This can mean a great deal of painfor children involved – unless the parents can keep their"fight" away from their children's eyes and ears. It also pointsto the great need for good legal advice for each parent. It seems that most parents would agree that the most gutwrenching, and heartbreaking consequence of divorce is decidingthe details of the custody of their children. The parents maynot love each other anymore but, they still strongly love theirchildren and feel a need to protect them – this means a need tophysically be with them, and that means wanting custody. As a result then, in cases of marital dispute, the custody ofthe children becomes paramount in the minds of the parents. Dueto the high emotional pain this decision can inflict, it canquickly take the separation or divorce from an amicablediscussion, to one of very heated strife. A good lawyer, who considers not just the end result ofcustody, but also the welfare of the children during the courtproceedings, should do his/her best to shelter the children fromthe pain of the custody battle. It is important for parents tokeep in mind that the end (custody) doesn't always justify themeans (painful battling where the child suffers). Despite the common sense notion to keep the kids out of itthough, many parents will blindly do "whatever it takes". In theworse case scenario then, tragically, the children can become aweapon used by the parents to inflict hurt and pain on eachother. Unfortunately, when this occurs the children may wellbecome the most traumatized mentally and emotionally of allconcerned. When this occurs, the parents should seek the adviceof qualified professionals, to guide them in providing help forthe children. Fortunately most children are very resilient, but even thestrongest may need additional help from all concerned in thedivorce or separation. The parents need to remember that theyare the primary caregivers for the children whether they aremarried or not. This means using good lawyers who don't need toslander and torture the other spouse to reach a reasonablesettlement. It's also a good idea, where possible, to get legal advicebefore a separation occurs. If one is considering a separationor divorce, a visit to a lawyer can often be very helpful inknowing one's rights. Advice about who will likely get whatbased on your current living situation an financial ability canbe quiet enlightening and also can prevent simple mistakes. For example, the parent living in the family home can be morelikely to get custody of the children. Whether this is the casein your state or province is very important to note if you arethinking of "moving out" and letting your spouse keep the home.What may seem like a kind gesture may come back to bite youlater. Early child custody advice can prevent such mistakes fromhappening.