Council for Children in Family Law

Children are important and, just like everyone else, their rights need to be considered and respected. However, during the course of divorces, separations, or other relationship breakdowns, the critical nature of children’s rights can often be overlooked.

By understanding the laws surrounding parenting, guardianship, child support, custody, access, and other aspects of family law, we can make it much easier to resolve family law issues and find the resources needed to ensure the rights of the children are respected.

The Overview of Family Law

Family law involves situations and issues that can occur when family relationships begin and end. This means it predominantly deals with legal issues that are related to marriage, separation, divorce, parenting, and many other issues. It can also involve situations such as a grandparent who would like to spend more time with their grandchildren, matters related to the division of family property, or other issues.

Understanding Children’s Rights

Children's rights are important but can sometimes be overlooked. When a couple is getting divorced, for example, the focus may be on their own personal and legal issues as well as the division of assets. However, matters involving any children the couple may have are also important.

Children of all ages have rights and parental responsibilities remain critical, even as the nature of the family relationship is changing.

During divorce proceedings, child custody and access to the children can sometimes be contentious issues. In addition to custody and access issues, there can be potential complaints from one parent or the other. For instance, a parent may take issue with the fact that the other isn’t showing up for visits, that they are spending more time with the child than has been agreed upon, or that a parent is creating boundaries to visitation. These are all significant issues in family law.

While the rights of the parents are certainly important, it’s critical to never overlook the child’s rights. 

The Purpose of Children’s Rights Council

The Children’s Rights Council is a non-profit organization that aims to help divorced, separated, and never married parents remain active in the lives of their children.

The council for children’s rights also aims to mitigate the impact of divorce and relationship break-ups on children, encourage parents to remain supportive of their children, decrease parental conflict, and address many other issues. Another aim of the council is to collect and disseminate information on child rights. Furthermore, the council tends to advocate for joint physical custody to benefit children and help parents better cooperate in the best interests of their children.

Why It’s Important to Get the Right Lawyer to Protect Your Child’s Rights

Since children's rights are important though often overlooked, it is critical they be considered and represented. Working with a lawyer who understands how important the rights of the child are is vital. Whether you are going through a divorce, separation, or another type of relationship breakdown that will affect how your child is cared for, it’s crucial to consider the best interests of the child as a primary concern.

How children are treated in court proceedings often depends on the age of the child and the situation they are in. While it’s important for children to have a voice and for their rights to be respected and defended, how this is done will usually depend on their age. Having an experienced family lawyer will help in these situations.

With older children, for example, a lawyer will advocate their position in court. This may not always be the case with younger children, depending on their development and their ability to make decisions. These factors may come into play during a divorce, for example, if the child wishes to choose whom they will live with. A lawyer well-versed in children’s rights law will work to protect the best interests of the child.

If you are looking to consult on issues of custody, access, or other aspects of family law with a legal professional, Sinclair Law Office is here to help. Please call us at 780-963-4867 or send us a message online.