Most parents want to spend the holidays with their children, which is why a season normally reserved for celebration often sparks serious child custody disputes. Fortunately, a well-crafted custody agreement can prevent these disputes by determining where your children will spend their holidays in advance. Keeping the holidays in mind when negotiating a custody schedule will ensure that both parents have quality time with their children during those days.

Sharing Child Custody During the Holidays

How Custody Plans Are Created

Whenever possible, divorcing parents should negotiate a shared custody agreement between themselves. If the relationship is especially contentious, a skilled mediation attorney can help resolve differences and create a parenting plan that protects the best interests of the child and the parents. This allows you to decide for yourselves where the children will spend the holidays, taking into account your family traditions. Otherwise, a judge may make these decisions for you, with results that may not work for either parent.

How to Share Custody During the Holidays

When crafting a child custody agreement, there are several ways to approach a holiday schedule. For instance, each parent might get to spend the holidays with their children in alternating years. You may also decide to split special days, so the kids spend Christmas with one parent and New Year’s with the other.

Whatever you decide, be sure to include a mechanism in your parenting plan for revisiting the schedule or making adjustments. For instance, if one parent’s family is planning a reunion during the holidays, the other may agree to let the children attend in exchange for a similar concession later on.

Child custody arrangements are one of the most important aspects of divorce, which makes disputes particularly difficult to resolve. With over 20 years of experience and a unique, compassionate approach to the law, The Law Office and Mediation Center of Jeannine M. Talbot has helped parents throughout  Litchfield County, CT, find solutions that work for them and their children. Visit her website for a closer look at their services, and call (860) 482-9004 to schedule a free consultation today.