Your children are the most important part of your life. Even though you chose to divorce the mother of your kids, you always prioritize the interests of your children. Nonetheless, while your child custody agreement has worked out well so far, it may not suit the needs of your children forever.
Florida is one of the best places in the country to be a divorced father. According to a recent study, family law judges in the Sunshine State often treat fathers fairly when ordering child custody. Still, in an emergency, your custody agreement may become grossly inadequate. Here are four situations when you may need to seek a modification of your child custody order.
1. Your former spouse dies
When the judge decided custody, both you and your former spouse were alive. If the mother of your children dies, you need to know who will care for your kids. Will you receive full custody? Will you share custody with another person? Either way, probably the only way you can continue to meet the needs of your children is to seek clarification from a judge.
2. Your former spouse moves far away
Following a divorce, you may not have much of a say in what your former spouse chooses to do. If your children’s mother moves far away, however, visiting your kids may become impossible. While you may not be able to prevent your ex-wife from relocating, you can ask a judge to modify your child custody agreement.
3. Your children are in danger
You love your kids more than anything. If you think your ex-wife is jeopardizing the safety of your children, you may not be able to sleep at night. To ensure your kids are safe, you may need to convince a judge that your ex-wife is no longer meeting their basic needs.
4. Your former spouse violates the agreement
You probably spent a significant amount of time negotiating your child custody agreement. If your ex-wife routinely violates the terms of the agreement, the child custody order does not do you much good. Therefore, you may decide to document the violations in a court filing and ask a judge to reconsider the custody order.
When you had children, you committed to caring for them. Your child custody agreement establishes care parameters. While you can likely rely on the order, it may not always meet the needs of your children. When an emergency arises, you may need to seek a modification of your child custody agreement.