Michigan is a no-fault divorce state. You are not required to provide justification for your divorce. In a custody case, it is not so much as you against the other party, but more of your capacity to care about the best interest of your child. Consequently, you actually don’t need to take any action to defend yourself against a divorce complaint. However, if you’re discussing child custody, it’s probably something you should give some thought to.
Click here to watch the video on What Evidence Can Be Used In A Custody Battle In Michigan?
We can have a long list of things that as evidence can be used against in a custody battle. In Michigan, you can look at the variables considered by the courts to decide what is in the best interest of the child. There are a dozen things that could be utilized to call our capacity to gain custody of the child into question.
The Best Interest Factors Are Powerful But Against You
In a custody case in Michigan, the court will give you a chance to show you have the best interest of the child in your mind. There are a dozen factors the court considers in evaluating your position. If the other party is keen enough to observe you are providing the opposite of these factors, they will definitely use the observation against you in a custody battle. Why would they not?
If the opposing party’s attorney has a very good understanding of how these best interest factors are used, they will find enough things to use against you. Now what are these best interest factors?
The judge will decide custody and parenting time matters based on the best interests of the child if the parents cannot come to an agreement. The following 12 factors must be taken into account by the court when using this legal test:
Factor (a): The love, affection, and other emotional ties existing between the parties involved and the child;
Factor (b): The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to give the child love, affection, and guidance and to continue the education and raising of the child in his or her religion or creed, if any;
Factor (c): The capacity and disposition of the parties involved to provide the child with food, clothing, and medical care or other remedial care recognized under the laws of this state in place of medical care, and other material needs;
Factor (d): The length of time the child has lived in a stable, satisfactory environment, and the desirability of maintaining continuity;
Factor (e): The permanence, as a family unit, of the existing or proposed custodial home or homes;
Factor (f): The moral fitness of the parties involved;
Factor (g): The mental and physical health of the parties involved;
Factor (h): The home, school, and community record of the child;
Factor (i): The reasonable preference of the child, if the judge considers the child to be old enough to express a preference;
Factor (j): The willingness and ability of each of the parties to facilitate and encourage a close and continuing parent-child relationship between the child and the other parent or the child and the parents. A judge may not consider negatively for the purposes of this factor any reasonable action taken by a parent to protect a child or that parent from sexual assault or domestic violence by the child’s other parent;
Factor (k): Domestic violence, regardless of whether the violence was directed against or witnessed by the child;
Factor (l): Any other factor considered by the judge to be relevant to a particular child custody dispute.
Each parent will be given the chance to provide information pertaining to the best interest factors mentioned above at the hearing on custody and parenting time.
The law does not mandate the court to give each consideration equal weight when determining what is in the child’s best interests. The judge determines how much importance to assign to each factor.
You Need To Have Established Custodial Environment Or Else
According to the law, custody arrangements for children should not be altered. In order to avoid confusion, the judge will always ask if the child has an established custodial environment or ECE with either one or both parents. If so, additional evidence would be needed before a judge could change the current circumstances.
When deciding whether there is an ECE, the judge takes the child’s life into account. For example, does the child depend on one (or both) of the parents for support, affection, and other requirements like food and shelter? Is the child old enough to have experienced the current circumstance for an extended period of time?
In order to effectively prepare for any Michigan child custody case, it is crucial to comprehend how the established custodial environment interacts with the burden of proof. The parent seeking to create or modify the sort of custody awarded to each parent has the burden of proving that an established custodial environment exists. If you are not able to provide ECE, you can bet the opposing party is taking note of that. It can be used against you in a custody battle.
Judges consider the child’s life circumstances when determining if an ECE exists. Do the child’s needs, such as love and affection, food, shelter, and other necessities, come from one (or both) of the parents? Is the youngster old enough to have lived in the existing situation for a long time?
If the judge rules that there is an ECE, the party seeking to change it must demonstrate with clear and persuasive evidence that the change is for the child’s best interests.
Now if you are a parent that seems to demonstrate any of these behaviors, the other party may already have evidence you can not create an ECE for your child.
- Insufficient time spent with your child
- Leaving your house;
- Failure to fulfill other parental responsibilities or nonpayment of child support;
- Cutting off communication with your child’s other parent;
- Distracting your child from his or her regular activities;
- Removing your child from daycare or school without informing the other parent; and or,
- Engaging in verbal or physical altercations or failing to control your emotions;
If the judge rules that there is no ECE, the winning party will be the one that can demonstrate, through a majority of the evidence, the proposed custody arrangement will be in the child’s best interests.
Other Things Dumb and Shameless That Can Be Used Against You
The goal of your family law attorney may not always be to assist you win at all costs, despite the fact many parents have opposing views. Instead, it is their responsibility to uphold the interests of your child and persuade the judge your case is in the child’s best interests.
Divorce is never simple to go through. Finding a suitable child custody agreement only serves to exacerbate the process’s emotional tensions, which frequently seep into and aggravate legal concerns.
Although the child custody procedure is challenging, this shouldn’t be a justification for acting in a way jeopardizing or completely sabotaging your case. Here’s some really dumb and shameless things you might be doing and seriously compromising your custody battle. Try not to make it dumber or more shameful.
Disobedience to Court Orders and Requests
If you disobey a court order, you could face penalties from the court and, worse still, it might discourage the court from listening to your case fairly. Being court-friendly is always preferable, and following the rules of the court is one method to do this.
Whether it pleases you or not, it is the court that mandates your custody arrangements, your parenting time. If they feel you cannot serve the best interest of the child by refusing court requests and orders, you are already on the bad side of the authority issuing parenting and custody orders.
Nothing will ruin your case more rapidly than failing to follow court orders, second only to acting badly in court and in your personal life. The court will typically view this as an indication of disdain for their authority, even if it won’t always result in you losing custody on its own.
Being dishonest.
Never take lying or being unfaithful to your spouse or partner lightly. These are typically grounds for dismissal by the court, and your dishonesty could unnecessarily undermine or complicate your child custody case.
By withholding information from their attorney, clients can sometimes make things worse and make it more likely that the attorney will be caught off guard in court. Giving your attorney the whole picture will enable them to fully appreciate the subtleties of your case and determine the best line of action.
Abusing alcohol and/or drugs and failing to confront substance abuse.
It’s understood concerns with substance misuse can have more serious, difficult-to-address consequences, you shouldn’t take this for granted. You can be sure when the child custody battle starts, your partner will make sure the judge is aware of these matters and that they will have an impact on your child custody case.
Alcohol and/or drug misuse, especially when your child is present, provides your ex extra reasons to be angry with you because you are harming your child. You must take care to avoid doing anything endangering your child.
In Michigan, child custody is decided based on what is best for the child. Although treating the disease of substance abuse is challenging, if you regularly abuse alcohol or drugs, you should get help.
There is no disputing that a parent who abuses drugs or alcohol can have a negative impact on a child’s development; the court will view this as a lifestyle choice. We advise against sharing pictures of you using drugs or alcohol on social media for the same reason.
Digitally generating evidence against oneself.
It’s critical to avoid posting any images, videos, or other content on social media that can make the court view you as unsuited for the job of being a parent. Nothing will help your case if people see images or recordings of you drinking or using illegal drugs.
You can find yourself at a disadvantage in Michigan family court if you post irate rants on Facebook or Instagram or text the other parent irately.
You could suffer irreparable harm in your child custody case if venomous, hostile, or violent messages were included as evidence. Whatever your partner or ex-partner puts online, refrain from commenting on it and engaging in a virtual tit-for-tat.
Unwillingness to accommodate what serves the child’s best interests.
If you and the other parent are able to consent to collaborative discussions, you may in many situations even reach a beneficial parenting agreement without the help of the court. However, refusing to make accommodations can prevent you from getting this result, and your actions might end up being used against you in the custody dispute trial.
Michigan courts favor joint custody arrangements, barring any concerns about abuse. It is assumed a child will do best with contact, affection, and support from both parents. The other parent may end up with more parenting time if you are disrespectful or reluctant to work with them.
Criticizing or disparaging your spouse in front of anyone.
Even though you feel the other parent hasn’t done anything to deserve your respect, it’s crucial to constantly be polite to them. By acting honorably, you will not only help to safeguard your child but also provide the court with an opportunity to see why you are a superior choice to represent the child’s best interests. You simply shouldn’t be criticizing your spouse or speak ill of them in front of others.
Your loved ones and friends are also subject to this constraint. The main issue is that anything you say to anyone can be used against you in a custody dispute and can give the court the impression you are unreliable.
Even if someone you confide in doesn’t consciously repeat what you said, they might still be called to testify in court or at a deposition. When they make the swearing to reveal the truth, they lose control of the situation. They could therefore have to violate your trust.
Introducing your new partner to your minor child.
It would be more appropriate if you don’t start a romantic relationship with anyone during this time, so resist the urge. It can be quite upsetting for kids to witness their parents having an intimate relationship with someone else during the arduous process of divorce.
Do not let someone you’ve been seeing around your child while your child custody arrangement is still being decided in court. Taking this step can prevent your child from becoming confused, unnecessary drama from occurring, and conflict with your ex-spouse. Legal difficulties may result from any of these consequences. Take effort to keep things calm.
Absence of a Family Law Attorney
Despite the fact that you are not obligated to have legal representation, your child custody dispute is too crucial to be left to chance. Only a certified family law attorney is able to offer the assistance you desire—an experienced, knowledgeable, and committed expert working on your side.
You probably are doing a lot of dumb and shameless things above because you either are not listening to good advice or you don’t have someone giving it. It probably means you don’t have a good attorney. A good one will never put up with all the dumb and shameless things you do.
Working with an expert lawyer is a necessity if you are sincere about securing your child’s best interests and safeguarding your own interests during the child custody procedure.
Your efforts to work on the best interests of your child is the most evidentiary behavior visible to the court.
Work with your attorney.
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Goldman & Associates Law Firm is here to with information about Child Custody and Divorce in the State of Michigan.