When you and your spouse were married, perhaps you had some disagreements about the type of school that your child would attend. Maybe you wanted to send your child to public school, but your spouse wanted to send them to private school. Maybe you were in favor of a traditional school model, but your spouse preferred the Montessori school system.
Married couples need to have discussions and decide what they’re going to do together. But say that you and your spouse have since gotten divorced. In the fall, your child is going to be starting at a new school. Who gets to decide where they’re going to enroll? What do you do if you and your ex-spouse don’t agree?
Who has legal custody?
The ability to make this decision is defined by legal custody of the child. If one of you has sole custody, then you can make this decision on your own. This is true even if physical custody is divided between both you and your ex.
However, if both of you have shared legal custody rights, then you do need to work together. You can’t simply choose the school that you prefer without discussing it with your ex, as that would be a violation of their child custody rights. The two of you must come to an agreeable solution or a compromise.
What if that’s not possible? Then you may need to go to court. The court will consider what is in the child’s best interests and attempt to make a decision that puts them first. But this does make your situation a bit more complex than if the two of you can find a solution outside of court.
If you find yourself in a dispute over legal custody rights or making decisions for your child, be sure you understand exactly what legal steps you can take.