Resolving Parenting Disagreements in Oklahoma Custody Battles
Hello, my name is Brian L. Jackson. I’m a Tulsa father’s rights attorney here with Dads.Law, where fathers are not disposable. So guys, I want to talk to you a little bit about what to do if you and the children’s mother seriously disagree on certain parenting decisions, and more specifically, you have very radically different values.
And this can happen. How is that settled? I would start by saying that having different values isn’t automatically a bar on joint custody. Unless somebody’s values are so messed up that they’re not a good placement for the child, they’re not a good custodian. But assuming you don’t have that kind of a problem, the immediate solution to it is to appoint a parenting coordinator.
And what that is is it’s a professional, usually a legal professional, but you can also use a counselor or psychological professional. And their job is to basically run as a referee between you and the other parent to try to build consensus. And they can be really valuable.
And in an extreme case, if you really can’t agree, you might be able to agree on giving the parenting coordinator the power to make a judgment call. And if they then make that judgment call, it is in the form of a recommendation, and it would have the force of a court order until the court does something different. This is a way to deal with really not being able to agree on something.
When Can a Parent Coordinator Help?
Where this can sometimes come up is medical decisions. The parents have very different attitudes, like, for example, whether or not the child might go on, say, ADHD medication. Or school placement might be another one you take up with the parenting coordinator. Or if you have very differing religious views, maybe you take that up with the parenting coordinator. But it’s a way to still co-parent even if you really don’t get along, because that person can be a resource.
Also, they do cost money, and that’s both a downside but also an upside. Because the cost to the parenting coordinator is an incentive not to let things get to the point where you need the parenting coordinator.
Contact Us for a Low-cost Strategy Session
If you have questions about that, you’re in the middle of a custody dispute, then you need a good lawyer. And one place you can find a good lawyer is at Dads.Law, where fathers are not disclosed.
