Mississippi Child Custody Attorney

The Mississippi child custody attorneys at Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC understand the fragile nature of child custody matters and the importance visitation and parenting time plays in your child’s upbringing.  That is why we take the time necessary to provide you with practical advice and counsel regarding your child custody matters and ensure you understand the effects of Mississippi’s child custody laws on your case. Call us today at (228) 872-8752 to speak with our child custody lawyers.

At Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC, we provide child custody representation that is:

• Confident;
• Competent; and
• Reliable.

Whether your custody case is complex or straightforward, call Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC to protect your legal rights.  Call now and schedule your confidential consultation with an experienced child custody attorney.

Our Experienced Mississippi Child Custody Attorneys Can Help

At Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC, we want you to make informed decisions about your child’s future.  Our Mississippi family law attorneys will explain your child custody options in detail and work together with you to devise the best child custody plan possible to meet your family’s needs.

This may include helping you:

• Determine if you and your co-parent can share legal custody and physical custody;
• Helping to establish a custody and visitation schedule that meets your needs; and
• Developing a childcare-related communication system between you and your co-parent that is effective and efficient.

Our attorneys can also assess your child custody case for a modification under Mississippi law and assist with child support matters.  Our attorneys can help you obtain results in any child-related family law issues.  Call us now and set up your complimentary consultation.

Types of Child Custody in Mississippi

There are two types of child custody in Mississippi regardless of marital status:  legal custody and physical custody.  Legal custody is a parent’s authority to decide a child’s health, education, and welfare, while physical custody has to do with a parent’s right to live with a child and provide daily care to a child.

Parents in Mississippi may share legal and physical custody, or one parent may solely retain legal and physical custody.  Judges in Mississippi prefer parents to make their own custody decisions but will step in where parents cannot agree.

When awarding custody, judges like to award joint legal custody.  This allows both parents to make major child-rearing decisions.  Otherwise, a parent with sole legal custody may make all life decisions for the child without needing input from the other parent.  Both parents would have access to information about their child’s medical, dental, and school records unless one parent’s rights were terminated.

How Judges Determine Child Custody in Mississippi

Judges determine child custody by examining what is in a child’s best interests.  Typically, it is in a child’s best interests to have at least minimal visitation with a parent, even if that parent has a history of abuse.  Those visits would be supervised by an agency or mutually agreed upon third party to protect the child’s safety.

Judges review several factors when considering a child’s best interests.  These include, but are not limited to, the following:

• The age, health, and sex of the child;
• The child’s relationship with each parent;
• The child’s ties to home, school, and community;
• Each parent’s physical and mental health;
• Each parent’s moral fitness;
• Each parent’s parenting skills, willingness, and capacity to provide childcare;
• Each parent’s willingness to foster a relationship between the child and the other parent;
• The child’s preference, if he or she is of sufficient age and maturity;
• Either parent’s history of domestic violence or abuse;
• Each parent’s stability; and
• Any other factor relevant to the child’s well-being.

There are no laws requiring judges use these factors in any order or give particular weight to any one factor.

Child custody may be modified upon a showing of a substantial change in circumstances and that a change in custody would be in a child’s best interests.  This is a high standard to meet and should be discussed with an experienced child custody attorney before making any custody modification moves or decisions.

Contact a Mississippi Child Custody Lawyer

A child custody determination can drastically impact your life and your child’s life.  Contact the experienced child custody attorneys at Haug, Farrar & Franco, PLLC for help realizing your child custody goals and expectations.  We never take child custody matters lightly and will work tirelessly to get you and your child the best results possible.