Ever wondered why it’s so important to understand what are the remedies for breach of contract within the context of child custody when few people really understand the direct ties between contract law and family law when it comes to child custody disputes? Well, allow us to shed a little bit of light on this mystery. It’s no secret that contracts have a tendency to invade just about every aspect of modern life, but they are particularly common in child custody situations. Whether it’s a parent proposal parenting plan or a divorce settlement agreement, they’re probably not far off from being involved in nearly every aspect of your life as a parent. Judges won’t force you to go through the court system to seek the enforcement of a parenting plan contract if the other party has committed a breach of contract by refusing to comply with it, but they’ll give you an option to file a legal suit against them.
If you do, the following remedies may be available: Now that you know a little bit more about what remedies you can look for, let’s take a closer look at how breach of contract remedies can help you either gain or lose shared parenting time. First, you’ll want to consider the different ways that contract damages are usually applied. For example, if you have a contract in which one parent is responsible for spending 2 weekends per month with a child, but fails to do so (resulting in a contract breach), then you may be entitled to a reduction of the parent preventing you from spending time with the child in order to make up for the time you lost.
Of course, when we’re talking about exclusive physical custody or even joint legal custody, the purposes of damages changes a bit. Instead of reducing the rights of the other parent, the idea is to offer a simple way to enforce the contract’s covenants. Perhaps this means the adding of additional time to the parenting plan to compensate for the time you’ve lost, or it could be financial penalties or perhaps even the complete revocation of custody rights. The circumstances surrounding your agreement matter when damaging the contract, and how damages are enforced can change significantly as a result.
Nothing is quite as difficult as dealing with custody and support concerns-especially when they’re compounded by a complex legal agreement. In many situations, it’s in your best interest to speak with a qualified family law specialist about how you can best enforce your legal agreements. In the event that you’re facing a situation where contract violations are raising your concern, the above list gave you a few pointers about how you can expect the courts to react to your situation. Understanding the different options you can pursue to support your case is the first step in obtaining the support that you deserve and even avoiding having to go through the courts. All of the above points will be a welcome reference when you’re faced with the need to enforce your agreements in the event of a breach.
For more information on family law and custody agreements, you can visit Child Welfare Information Gateway.