Parenting Plan
Colorado Parenting Plan Lawyer
A parenting plan is an agreement between the parents with respect to their responsibilities concerning the child(ren) - This includes decision making and parenting time. The agreement is submitted to the Court for guidance in determining parental responsibilities. The absence of a parenting plan will ultimately require the Court to determine the rights and responsibilities without the cooperative input of the parents.
Attorney Jeff Alter can put together a parenting plan that is more likely to be adopted by the Court - One that exhibits the best interests of the child(ren). He will tailor the plan to the circumstances of your case, including:
- Primary residence of the child(ren) - A legal or primary residence for the child(ren) is generally advisable as this may have implications for tax purposes, school attendance, recreational facility use, etc. Consideration must be given as to whether this residence will be a physical address or wherever one of the parents resides;
- Parenting time - This is discussed more fully in the parenting time section of this site. It includes the regular parenting time of the parents with the child(ren) as well as vacations, holidays, school breaks, etc;
- Education/Schools - Who pays for the school supplies and expenses? Will there be participation in extracurricular activities? Will the school be public or private? Which school will be chosen? Will college be attended? How will tutoring if needed, be handled?;
- Religion - This involves the choice of religion, religious activities, church, religious observances, etc.;
- Medical issues/Health care - Who is responsible for providing health care or dental coverage? Who will the doctor or dentist be? How will uninsured medical costs be paid for? When and to what extent will medical information be accessed or exchanged?;
- Dispute Resolution - Returning to the Court to deal with disagreements that may likely come up in the future is expensive, time-consuming, and many times antagonistic. Providing for an alternative dispute resolution such as mediation in the parenting plan can help the parents deal with "irreconcilable" differences;
- Other Matters - Any other issues that are likely to come up may be addressed, such as discipline of the child(ren), relationship with grandparents or other relatives, how to handle emergencies or scheduling conflicts, estate planning issues, type of allowable entertainment, etc.
Whether the plan should be simple or detailed will depend on the unique family situation involved - Jeff will guide you in this matter.