Legal Rights of the Mother

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Mothers’ rights in divorce, and other family law cases, face the competing interests of the needs of the children and involvement of the father. The court must evaluate the needs of children involved and what may be in their best interests. Knowing that a judge will be weighing this can help mothers successfully focus their cases and obtain positive results for themselves and their families.

With the goal of helping mothers stay educated about their rights as a mother, the family law attorneys at our firm in Denver and Colorado Springs offer the following information for your benefit:

• Mothers’ rights in divorce are used to protect your right to child custody, support, and protection from domestic violence.
• The rights of mothers are determined in the same manner as most decisions regarding family law issues: in the best interests of the child.
• Mothers can receive child support for the child based on needs such as food, clothing, shelter, activities, education, and more.
• Mothers have the same rights as fathers in terms of parenting time in divorce cases. This means the mother – if she is fit to care for the child – should have ample time to take care of her child, provide advice, help with school work, and of course, have fun.

The time a mom gets to spend with her kids is precious. During a divorce, it can feel as if that precious time is being threatened. Throwing terms around like “sole custody” and “visitation” often serve to make a mom’s fear feel even more real.

In the vast majority of divorce cases, a mother’s fears are overstated. Divorce courts try hard to impact and change the lives of the children as little as possible. Judges structure their orders to provide consistency for the family whenever possible.

Parents all too often try to use the threat of “taking the kids away” as a means of getting what they want from the other spouse. Motives may include more child support or a greater distribution of the marital estate, among other things. While in the vast majority of divorce cases, threats to “take the kids away” are hollow, they can still stir up fear and anger.

The trick is for the mom to know the difference between the hollow and empty threats and a courtroom reality. You can only do this by being well informed. A Denver divorce attorney from our team at Johnson Márquez Legal Group can help protect you and provide you with the peace of mind you need and deserve.

Lawyers can help by explaining to moms how a court reaches a parenting time decision, what factors it will look at, and what the real risks are. The phrase “parenting time” means the time allotment for each parent. A parenting time order consists of dates, times, locations, and sometimes directions as to parental conduct. Courts customize these schedules so as to fit the best interests of the children.

Decision-making responsibility for children is also allocated between the parents in Colorado divorce cases. The phrase “decision-making” in family law refers to the parent responsible for making major life decisions for children, such as education, religion, and health care. Decision-making may be awarded to the parents jointly, solely to one parent, or it can be allocated out based on the subject matter.

Child support obligations are common in Colorado divorce cases involving children. Vary rarely is there a family law case where there is no support order. In Colorado family law cases, child support is calculated based on a strict formula that accounts for several factors including incomes of the parties, the number of nights each parent has custody of the children, and any work-related childcare expenses.

Domestic violence is a serious matter. In divorce cases, violence between spouses is all too common. This violence can impact everyone involved and result in tragic consequences. Protection orders can help victims gain some independence and space from the abuser. Please get in touch with our Denver family law firm to learn more about domestic abuse and how our team can protect you.