Guest Post Series:  Attorney Nicole K. Levy  of  Stevenson, Lynch & Owens  Explores Massachusetts Law in Search of a Clear Definition for "legal custody" in Massachusetts. There are few  family law  issues in Massachusetts that inspire more head-scratching confusion and incorrect assumptions than "legal custody". Unlike  physical custody , legal custody is an abstract idea that purports to embody a parent’s right to participate in a child's major life decisions. In this blog series we examine four common assumptions about legal custody in Massachusetts and attempt to answer the question: what has a parent who has been awarded legal custody really received? See how we addressed each Assumption: Assumption 1 – Access to School & Medical Records Assumption 2 – Consent to Medical Treatment Assumption 3 – The Shared Custody “Veto Power” Assumption 4 – Presumption of Shared Legal Custody What do Massachusetts Appellate Court Decisi...

Guest Post Series:  Attorney Nicole K. Levy  of  Stevenson, Lynch & Owens  Explores Massachusetts Law in Search of a Clear Definition for "legal custody" in Massachusetts. There are few  family law  issues in Massachusetts that inspire more head-scratching confusion and incorrect assumptions than "legal custody". Unlike  physical custody , legal custody is an abstract idea that purports to embody a parent’s right to participate in a child's major life decisions. In this blog series we examine four common assumptions about legal custody in Massachusetts and attempt to answer the question: what has a parent who has been awarded legal custody really received? Assumption 4. Shared Legal Custody is Presumptive  Finally, an assumption about legal custody in Massachusetts that is supported by some law! The Massachusetts divorce statute does indeed make shared legal custody for married parents presumptive at the temporary order stage: [U]ntil...

Guest Post Series:  Attorney Nicole K. Levy  of  Stevenson, Lynch & Owens  Explores Massachusetts Law in Search of a Clear Definition for "legal custody" in Massachusetts. There are few  family law  issues in Massachusetts that inspire more head-scratching confusion and incorrect assumptions than "legal custody". Unlike  physical custody , legal custody is an abstract idea that purports to embody a parent’s right to participate in a child's major life decisions. In this blog series we examine four common assumptions about legal custody in Massachusetts and attempt to answer the question: what has a parent who has been awarded legal custody really received? Assumption 3: A Parent with Shared Legal Custody can “Veto” the Major Educational, Medical and/or Religious Decisions of the Other Parent Many parents believe that shared legal custody provides a kind of "veto power" over major decisions the other parent makes on behalf of a child. Such ...

Guest Post Series:  Attorney Nicole K. Levy  of  Stevenson, Lynch & Owens  Explores Massachusetts Law in Search of a Clear Definition for "legal custody" in Massachusetts. There are few  family law  issues in Massachusetts that inspire more head-scratching confusion and incorrect assumptions than "legal custody". Unlike  physical custody , legal custody is an abstract idea that purports to embody a parent’s right to participate in a child's major life decisions. In this blog series we examine four common assumptions about legal custody in Massachusetts and attempt to answer the question: what has a parent who has been awarded legal custody really received? Assumption 2: A Parent without Legal Custody Cannot Consent to Medical Treatment or Secure New Medical or Therapeutic Providers for Their Child(ren) One of the most widely held assumptions about legal custody is that a parent who lacks legal custody cannot sign a child up for medical treatme...

Guest Post Series: Attorney Nicole K. Levy of Stevenson, Lynch & Owens Explores Massachusetts Law in Search of a Clear Definition for "legal custody" in Massachusetts. There are few family law issues in Massachusetts that inspire more head-scratching confusion and incorrect assumptions than "legal custody". Unlike physical custody , which focuses on the physical location/residence of the children, legal custody is an abstract idea that purports to embody a parent’s right to participate in a child's major life decisions. But what rights does legal custody really include? Virtually every custody case in Massachusetts includes an order for legal custody, but few clients, attorneys or even judges seem able to define exactly what the phrase means. The Statutory Definitions: Legal Custody Under the Massachusetts divorce statute , "shared legal custody" is defined as the “continued mutual responsibility and involvement by both parents in major ...

This past summer we posted a full blog series on issues facing Unmarried Parents in Massachusetts .  While many issues that unmarried parents face may be different than those faced by married parents, most of the issues will be the same.  Parenting a child still comes with may of the same worries, financial obligations, affections, and lessons, regardless of the parents' relationship with each other.  However, when legal realities collide with economic or practical realities, there may be significant differences in how unmarried parents are treated. Removal cases are one example of this disparity in Massachusetts.  Removal is a legal term of art for the simple concept of when one parent wants to move their residence out of state and take their child with them.  In Massachusetts, M.G.L. c. 208 Section 30 covers the removal of minor children in a divorce case, and prohibits removal without consent of both parents or order of the court.  We explore in what ...

Summer is finally here.  The air is humid, the sunblock is out, and it's finally time for vacations and school break.  But enjoying summer too much has its consequences.  Our  Summer Lovin'  series is about those consequences for Unmarried Parents in Massachusetts: Summer Lovin' Series #9: What happens if I want full custody of a child born out of wedlock? Unmarried mothers in Massachusetts are presumed to be the sole legal and physical custodian of a child without going to court.  If the father requests it, the court can order that either party have sole legal or physical custody or that the parties share legal or physical custody depending on your specific circumstances. However, "full custody" is somewhat of a myth, because unless the other parent is unfit they will still be involved in the child's life to some extent. While sole legal custody allows one parent to make major decisions, sole physical custody does not mean the child is alw...

If you live in a cave, then maybe you haven't heard that TomKat is no more.   As reported by TMZ , Katie Holmes has filed for divorce from Tom Cruise and according to the pleadings she is seeking sole legal and physical custody of their daughter Suri. What I find interesting is not the fact that another celebrity couple has called it quits.  Celebrities getting divorced is hardly even surprising news anymore.  Okay, it is a little interesting that this would be Tom's third divorce and, according to the Huffington Post , all three occurred when his wives turned 33. But what I find most interesting is how the media has been reporting the divorce filings and what it says about how we perceive custody battles. Specifically the Huffington Post had the following headline on an article about the divorce filings: Suri Cruise Custody: Katie Holmes Reportedly Seeks Full Custody In Divorce From Tom Cruise When I first read this I immediately cringed, because I am so...

There are currently six pending bills which would make significant changes to the current Massachusetts custody statute and they have all been reviewed in depth in this forum over the last few weeks. If you need a quick cheat sheet for how they compare, below you will find a table that summarizes the proposed changes in each bill. For our recommendations, keep reading after the table. Current Law Proposed Bill Proposed Change P1 – P5 Definitions of Custody S.659 Shared physical custody definition changed to state “child shall reside equally”, and adds definition of “parenting plan”. S.847 Definitions Deleted Entirely H.1306 & H. 2684 No Change H.1330 H.2244 P6 – Rights of Parents held equal absent misconduct. Court shall consider adverse effects of past or present living situation. S.659 Delete Paragraph Entir...