Child With Special Needs – Divorce in Michigan

* Are you looking for child support for a child with special needs?

* Are you in need of a divorce settlement?

* Do you want custody of your special needs child?

Our Michigan attorneys are here to help you every step of the way.

Here’s some information to help you with your legal matter:

What are the special considerations and struggles that you may face?

Divorce is never easy and is usually the last resort for couples. All couples who divorce go through struggles and changes those couples with children may experience even greater struggles and considerations that need to be addressed. And a family with a special needs child may find that they have different considerations and struggles which leads them to realize that a so-called normal or cookie-cutter divorce will not work for their family. It will be very important for the family with a special needs child to work with family law attorneys who can recognize and address the considerations of the special needs child. Below we will discuss several considerations and struggles that must be addressed with a divorce that involves a special needs child they will include visitation, financial support, decision making, and the special needs child’s transition into adulthood.

Child Custody of a child with special and visitation rights

Getting custody of a special needs child can be a struggle for both the parents and the child. There will have to be a lot of consideration in this area for what is the best possible situation for the child. An experienced attorney can guide you through this process.

Visitation has various considerations too. Typical visitation rights would consist of alternating weekends and mid-week visits. Many children who have special needs will have their behavior affected or school performance affected by the disruption of their daily schedule. So parents may need to consider longer visits with each parent instead of shorter more frequent visits.

Another option for visitation would be that the child resides in one residence and the parents move in and out. This would be especially beneficial during the school year. Some things to consider while determining visitation may be how well the child transitions from one environment to another. Has the behavior or health of the child suffered due to the visitation agreement? How are the parents going to communicate and work together to make the visitation schedule go smoothly for the special needs child? Visitation agreements just as spousal and child support agreements will need to be reviewed and adjusted to fit the needs of the child.

Decision Making

Decision-making is another special consideration that families with special needs children must struggle with. Communication will be key in this struggle and the parents will have to agree so that the special needs child will have all of their needs met. It will be especially important for neither parent to be in denial about the very hard decisions that may need to be made. Guardianship of the special needs child will need to be addressed. Will it be both parents or just one? Once guardianship is in place parents need to discuss and make a plan for the decisions they will be facing. Such as medical, educational, recreational, treatments, employment, and residency, and this just touched on a few of the many decisions that need to be made for a special needs child. Parents and their attorneys need to work together to ensure that the decision-making is being done in the best interest of the child. As the special needs child grows up the types of decisions these families will have to make will change. This will be especially true when the child is transitioning from childhood to adulthood.

Transition from Childhood to Adulthood

A special needs child transitioning from childhood to adulthood can be very challenging. There are several things that need to be considered in a divorce when addressing this issue. Parents along with their attorneys need to make sure to look at the long-term needs of the special needs child. This would include even after one or both parents have passed away. To begin with, it will need to be determined how long financial support for a special needs child will be needed. This could range from a few years to a lifetime of financial support depending on the needs of the child. Consideration of government benefits, private agency benefits, and employment of child when determining how much financial support will be needed for the transitioning child. Will the child be living independently or will custodial care be needed? If custodial care is needed will one or both parents provide that needed care? Other considerations will need to be addressed such as guardianship, employment, continuing education, and recreational activities for transitioning children. When addressing these special considerations during your divorce you can help your child transition from childhood to adulthood.

Divorce settlement with special needs child and child support

Special consideration for financial support for the family divorcing with a special needs child is needed. Consideration for child support, divorce settlement, and alimony will need to be determined differently for a family with a special needs child. The special needs child will have more expenses such as special education, therapies, treatments, medical costs, and recreational activities to name a few. A full-time caregiver may also be needed for the special needs child which would cause one parent to not be able to work full time outside of the home. Consideration must be made for child support that ends at the child’s age of majority but for a special needs child, financial need may be needed much longer or possibly for a lifetime. Public assistance programs also need to be considered by parents to make sure they are not forfeiting any of those due to child support or alimony payments. Financial support will be a stressful but necessary area to cover during the divorce proceedings.

Special Needs Divorce and Family Law Attorneys

Families with a special needs child don’t just have the normal struggles and considerations when divorcing they have many stressful and special considerations that must be addressed. It’s important to hire a lawyer who is experienced in handling special needs divorces and understands all the issues that come up during the process. Visitation, decision making, transition of special needs child into adulthood, and financial support planning are just a few that we touched on briefly in this article. There will be many other special considerations and many other struggles that the family with a special needs child will have to address during the divorce proceedings. Couples who are divorcing and have a special needs child need to employ family law attorneys who are knowledgeable and experienced in the special considerations and struggles that special needs families face.

Call our Michigan Special Needs Divorce Lawyers today for a free consultation at (248) 588-3333. Also, click here to get a price list for family law attorney services.