Attorney
Being a parent is a 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, 365 days a year job. Which is why parents who have careers that also demand a similar level of attention often find it difficult to manage both roles.
Striking a balance between the two is never easy, but it is particularly challenging when you have just split up with your child’s other parent, and everyone in the family is struggling to adjust to the new normal.
In these situations, working with an experienced New Mexico family law attorney is important. But even better is working with a business-minded family law attorney like Bob Matteucci who understands how to draft the flexibility professionals, business owners, and entrepreneurs need into their child custody agreements.
Building Work-Life Balance Into Your Child Custody Agreement
As a business owner or professional, your work schedule can be demanding and unpredictable. You may work odd hours, have to spend weekends in the office, or frequently travel to conferences or different offices.
This presents unique challenges if you need to negotiate a child custody agreement since those documents often dictate exactly how often and how much you get to see your children, as well as spelling out what other responsibilities you will be sharing with your child’s other parent.
But there is actually no law that says your custody agreement and parenting plan have to be so formulaic. If you and your former partner can build a solid co-parenting relationship that is focused on doing what is in your child’s best interest, it is possible to craft a child custody agreement that recognizes work is a necessary part of work-life balance.
Two Parts of the Custody Equation
New Mexico state law assumes that parents will share custody of their children. But many people do not understand that what they are actually being asked to share is one thing — child custody — that the law breaks into two parts:
- Physical custody is the time you spend with your child. When you have physical custody of your child, you are responsible for providing a safe and loving home, meeting your child’s daily needs, and facilitating your child’s regular routines and activities. How you apportion physical custody is going to be unique to your family, but as someone with a hectic work life you may need to prioritize quality time over the quantity of time you get when it comes to physical custody.
- Legal custody is the authority to make important decisions concerning your child’s upbringing. It includes your right to have a say in your child’s religion, education, child care, recreational activities, and medical and dental care. Both parents will typically share joint legal custody even if one parent has primary physical custody. However, some families prefer a modified joint legal custody plan that gives the parent who has primary physical custody the power to make parenting decisions without consulting the child’s other parent out of convenience.
Figuring out how to effectively communicate with your former partner about your child is the key to unlocking success in both of these areas.
Serving Families with Dignity & Compassion
As a former business owner himself, Attorney Bob Matteuci understands better than most family law attorneys how challenging it can be to achieve some form of work-life balance when both your work and your life are fighting for your full attention.
Bob is ready to help you negotiate a flexible child custody agreement that helps you maximize the quality time you get to spend with your child, and ensure you have a say when important decisions are made about your child’s health, education, or upbringing. Please contact him today to schedule an initial consultation.