Flexible Child Custody Arrangements: Co-Parenting Agreements That Work for You

By Aman Kahlon

When your relationship ends, you and your ex-partner will need to make arrangements for any dependent children you have. This includes making parenting arrangements and maybe even contact arrangements for other relatives and important people involved in the child’s life.

My name is Aman Kahlon and I’m a family lawyer at McQuarrie. We have helped many clients in British Columbia create flexible child custody arrangements and make a divorce as smooth as possible for their families. In this article on flexible child custody arrangements, I share the top tips about making a child custody arrangement work for you instead of against you.

What is a child custody arrangement?

When parents are separating, there are several important issues to work out. During a divorce, you may want to address the issues of guardianship, parental responsibilities, parenting time, parenting arrangements, and contact with the child.

When making the decision on child custody, BC courts consider the child’s physical, emotional, and psychological safety, security, and well-being. Under the Divorce Act, a Judge makes decisions based only on the best interests of the child. This means that when a Judge is deciding on parenting arrangements, they must think about what’s best for the child and how well the parents will be able to provide a healthy and safe environment for the child.

What are co-parenting agreements?

If you are separating from your spouse, it is a good idea to get a co-parenting agreement. A co-parenting agreement is a written document that outlines how you and your ex-partner will raise your children after a separation.

Some key things that a co-parenting plan may define are the residential arrangements, health care, communication between parents and other family members, travel and accommodation, education and related expenses, language, religion, and cultural traditions in which the child is brought up.

Making a co-parenting agreement that suits you

When deciding on parenting arrangements, courts often use the same template for custody and parenting terms. We understand that each family is different and a parenting arrangement that works for one family may be completely impossible for yours.

When practicing family law in BC, we’re always conscious of the wide diversity of people living here. Different cultures have different customs and social norms around family. Our goal is to make sure that the transition associated with divorce happens as smoothly as possible for the kids and minimizes the damage to the quality of their life.

This means that here at McQuarrie, we are not afraid to offer unconventional solutions to child custody and parenting arrangements.

Conclusion

Divorce is one of the most challenging moments your family may go through. Apart from being stressful and emotional for the couple, a marriage breakdown can also significantly affect kids. If a divorce turns into an ugly process in which the child witnesses the content of their parents, it can leave long-lasting emotional scars.

However, divorce doesn’t have to be so traumatic for children. An experienced family lawyer will be able to work with you to forge individualized and tailored parenting arrangements that work best for your family.

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For over 50 years, McQuarrie has advocated for and helped clients throughout B.C. deal with the complex issues that arise in family law matters.

Because every family is unique, McQuarrie’s lawyers bring a humanized, personal approach to addressing each situation.

In legal separation matters, our team of compassionate family lawyers will help you navigate divorce and ensure that your family’s interests are prioritized during the separation.

We are here to provide guidance and support needed to avoid making similar mistakes during the divorce process.

Contact us at 604.581.7001 to book a consultation with one of our Family Law lawyers today.