Pennsylvania Child Custody

QUESTION: “How do we decide whether sole child-custody or joint child-custody is best for our family?” There is no doubt that creating a custody plan can be the most difficult part of a divorce. Each parent wants the best for the child, but parents may not agree on what “the best” means. Understanding your custody […]

QUESTION: I thought I wanted sole custody of our children but now that I have them all of the time I’m finding it impossible to manage them and make a living, what can I do? You fought for your current custody arrangement, but it’s just not working out. Whatever the reason, when your custody arrangement […]

QUESTION: “My wife has been cheating on me. I want to leave her, but I’m worried that I won’t get custody of our kids. Are the courts still reluctant to grant child-custody to fathers?” For many fathers, the hardest part of a divorce is not being a daily part of their children’s lives. They assume […]

Paternity by estoppel A recent article in the Legal Intelligencer discussed the application of the concept of paternity by estoppel to a custody case recently decided by the Pennsylvania Superior Court. Paternity by estoppel is the concept whereby once a man has been held out as a child’s father, his paternity cannot be later denied. […]

How to Prepare for a Child Custody Trial You’ve been there for every day of your child’s life. You were there when she opened her eyes for the first time, when she took her first steps, when she rode her first bike… but, you may not be there for the next “first”.  You are getting […]

In an opinion filed in December 2012, the Pennsylvania Superior Court affirmed its prior holding as to the standard of review of parenting coordinators’ decisions in custody cases. Parenting coordinators are individuals whom the court appoints to aid enforcement of custody orders. After the court enters an order for legal and/or physical custody, the court […]

A recent Pennsylvania case featured two ex-spouses who disagreed whether the husband was entitled to a modification of their existing support order. In the case, Windley v. Schwarz, the spouses were divorced in New Hampshire and thereafter agreed to a uniform support order. Under the agreed upon order, the husband was to pay the wife […]

Classes have started back up again in most schools throughout the Philadelphia area. The start of a new school year is always exciting, but when you are divorced, you are likely to feel some degree of stress. You may wonder, for example, if the current custody schedule will work, or you may not trust that […]

An essay recently published online makes an interesting argument that the law should presume that divorcing parents should get equal custody time with their children. The idea has been floating around for some time, but no state has adopted it. In most states, including Pennsylvania, if the parents cannot come to an out-of-court settlement, the […]

Before filing for your Pennsylvania online divorce you may need to negotiated child custody rights and visitation with your spouse. Since online divorce requires that there are no disputes between the two parties, child custody issues must be resolved before you file or it won’t be considered an uncontested divorce. Below are a few tips […]