Divorce and Family Law Attorneys in Exton PA

For a no-fault divorce, or grounds of irretrievable breakdown, the couple must live “separate and apart” for a minimum of one year before the divorce will be granted. However, if both parties can agree on all issues (child support, child custody, property division, spousal support), they may be able to take advantage of a shorter 90-day waiting period instead. Experienced divorce and family law attorneys in Exton PA, such as those with Petrelli Previtera, LLC may be able to help you determine whether you are eligible for the shorter waiting period. 

For a fault-based divorce, there is no waiting period. Per PA §3301, grounds for fault in Pennsylvania include: 

• Adultery: One spouse committed had an affair
• Bigamy: One spouse is married to another person
• Cruelty: One spouse inflicted “cruel and barbarous treatment” on the other and endangered their life or health
• Desertion: The other spouse abandoned the filing spouse for a minimum of two years before the divorce filing
• Imprisonment: One spouse has been sentenced to prison for a minimum of two years
• Indignities: The other spouse has made life burdensome and intolerable for the filing spouse

There are 17 factors used in Pennsylvania to determine whether a spouse is eligible for alimony, or spousal support, and how much support they can get. Alimony is not required to be paid to either spouse unless the spouse can prove that they are unable to meet their own needs without financial assistance from the other spouse who can afford to pay it. 

Some of the 17 factors that are considered include:

• Length of the marriage
• Relative earning capacity of each spouse
• Standard of living during the marriage
• Contribution as a homemaker during the marriage 
• Contribution to spouse’s education
• Whether the custodial parent’s ability to earn income is affected by the children
• Property brought to the marriage
• Whether the supported spouse can become self-supporting through employment

Fathers have rights to their children. If paternity is already established because the father was married to the mother at the time the child was born or a paternity test has confirmed, it, fathers have the right to see their children and have custody of their children. They can petition the court for physical custody and/or visitation. Additionally, fathers can request legal custody, which grants them the right to participate in decision-making regarding important aspects of their children’s lives, such as religion, education, and healthcare. 

PA §5328 lists the factors that a court must consider when determining custody. This includes how old a child must be to decide which parent they want to live with. Per this law, children do not get to decide which parent they want to live with, but they do get to offer their well-reasoned preference, based on the maturity and judgment of the child. The law does not state a specific age, it only mentions the child’s maturity and judgment. Based on this, it is more likely that the older and more mature the child is, the more likely that the court will consider their wishes. Even a young child’s wishes may be considered if they are mature enough and can offer a well-reasoned preference. 

It is important to remember that the child’s preference is only one factor to be considered. There are several other factors listed in the law that must also be considered and may outweigh the child’s preference. 

Pennsylvania’s child custody laws address issues such as child custody, child support, visitation, and other family-law related matters. The laws state that courts must make their decisions based on what is in the best interest of the child. The courts will consider things such as family relationships, mental and physical condition of all parties, location of each party, the child’s wishes, and other factors. 

One thing that is not considered in determining custody is the parent’s gender. Pennsylvania’s child custody laws include a gender-neutrality provision that helps to ensure that both favorable and unfavorable bias toward either gender are overcome and give both parents equal custody rights. This means that if both parents are found to be competent caregivers, the court is likely to award joint custody. 

Under typical circumstances, the parents determine who gets to see their children. If the parents deny the grandparents visitation, that decision is usually final. However, there are certain circumstances under which grandparents can petition the court for visitation rights. Some of these circumstances include: 

• The child’s parent is deceased and the grandparent is the parent of the deceased parent
• The grandparents have had a relationship with the child with the parents’ consent, but the parents are now fighting over custody and do not agree on letting the grandparents see the children
• The child has lived with the grandparent for a minimum of 12 months and has been removed from the grandparent’s home within the last six months

Generally, an unmarried mother has full physical and legal custody of the child until the unmarried father has established paternity. Even if both parents know that he is the father of the child, paternity must be legally established through the court system. This is usually done in one of the following ways: 

• Both parents sign a Voluntary Acknowledgement of Paternity
• The mother files a Complaint for Child Support
• Either parent files a Petition to Determine Paternity

Once paternity has been established, the father has the same rights as the mother and can enforce his parental rights, including requesting visitation and/or custody. 

When parents are married, grandparents do not have any custody rights to their grandchildren. However, if the parents are not married, the grandparents have a favored third-party status that may allow them to request custody in certain circumstances. Examples of circumstances where a grandparent may request custody of their grandchild include: 

• When the child’s parent has died and the grandparent is the deceased parent’s parent
• When the parents are divorced
• When the parents have filed for divorce or been separated for at least six months
• When the child has resided with the grandparent for at least 12 consecutive months and the grandparent files within six months of the parents removing the child from the grandparents’ home

In any case where a grandparent is asking for visitation or custody rights, the court will evaluate the relationship the child had with their grandparents prior to the request being made, including personal contact between grandparent and child and whether an ongoing relationship with the grandparent will interfere with the child’s relationship with their parents. The best interest of the child will also apply to these custody requests, just as they do when the parents are asking for custody.