It’s important to understand that divorce and family laws evolve. That’s not to say there cannot be an improvement.
There’s probably no part of family law more contentious that child custody, however. This is especially true when it comes to enforcement of child custody orders – especially orders of contempt.
Attempts by Pennsylvania legislators to improve child custody enforcement
A recent news article discusses proposed changes to Pennsylvania’s child custody laws that would allow for “make-up time.” This would allow for awards of custody in situations where violations of child custody agreements occur.
Pennsylvania General Assembly House Bill 437, if passed, would amend current Pennsylvania law. The bill came about because of reports of a parent refusing to abide by existing child custody laws, and by taking measures to keep the child from becoming available to the other parent. While this particular case went to court, there was no sanction against this parent under current child custody laws.
The supporting memorandum for this piece of legislation from Representative Tedd C. Nesbit states that House Bill 437 would remedy this circumstance. It would allow for the power of judges to temporarily modify an existing custody order should a parent be found in contempt.
Opponents to this legislation have a different take on the bill. They suggest that in some circumstances, parents do not follow a custody order because they wish to protect their child from possible abuse.
Family law attorneys can guide parents through these sorts of stressful matters. Considering the child’s best interests are at stake, it’s necessary that we get to the correct child custody ruling. Unfortunately, this is not always an easy determination to make. For that reason, it’s important to have a child custody advocate on your side who understands current laws. More importantly, they can help make certain an order is right under the individual circumstances of the case.
