Lenexa, Kansas Child Custody Attorney

Terms You Should Know

Legal Custody: The legal authority to make decisions or act on behalf of a child such as decisions about the child’s health and medical treatment, education, and other important matters affecting the child’s general welfare

Joint Legal Custody: This is the most common situation in Kansas. In Joint Legal Custody the parents have equal decision-making authority over decisions affecting the children.

Sole Legal Custody: This is extremely rare in Kansas. In Sole Legal Custody one parent has the primary right to decide matters of health and education in the child’s best interests.

Parenting Plan: A Parenting Plan is the document that outlines what parenting time you and your co-parent have with the children on a regular basis. The Parenting Plan serves as a “tie-breaker” if there is ever a dispute.

A child custody or child support case may begin at the time of a divorce or because of a paternity case. If you need help bringing a custody or support case to court, contact our Lenexa, Kansas law office. Our family lawyers use their family law experience and mediation skills to help families reach fair and cost-effective solutions to child custody matters.

Petition for Child Custody and Parenting Time

Child custody is a hotly contested issue in most divorce cases. Strong emotions can make it difficult for parents to work together to develop a custody plan based on their child’s best interest. This is when a trained mediator can be particularly helpful. Learn more about mediation and how we can help you and your child’s other parent reach a child custody / parenting time agreement that is acceptable to all parties.

We assist clients with Kansas child custody modifications when a change in circumstances requires a change in parenting time or custody, such as:

• Move-away situations
• Child abuse or neglect
• Parental illness
• Incarceration

We can help with:

• Filing a motion to modify a child custody order
• Initial child custody and parenting plans in Kansas divorce and paternity cases
• Questions about grandparent visitation rights

Child Support and Modification of Support Orders

Kansas child support guidelines specify, to a great degree, the amount of support that a parent will pay. If you are considering divorce and wonder how Kansas child support guidelines might impact you, contact us. We can explain how the child support calculation applies in your situation.

Situations do change over time and you may need to request a modification of your original child support order if, for example:

• Your income goes down because of a job loss or change
• Your ability to carry insurance changes
• Your child’s need for daycare changes
• The amount of time the child spends with you or your co-parent increases or decreases
• The child develops special medical needs

The information on this website is for general informational purposes only and is not legal advice. Nothing in this website establishes an attorney-client relationship between Valerie L. Moore or Amy Vinton and the viewer.