Living Will Statutes In Iowa
The laws that affect the making of an Iowa custody and visitation schedule are found in Chapter 598 of the Iowa Code. These guidelines contain the necessary information about how the state feels about joint custody, the best interest of the child, how a custody and visitation schedule is accepted by the court, etc. This is important information for a mother and father involved in a custody situation to know. Here is a brief overview of some of the rules that relate directly to the custody and visitation schedule.
The first big issue the law addresses is joint custody. Whether or not the parents have a joint custody arrangement majorly affects the custody and visitation schedule. Iowa law favors a joint custody agreement. The state encourages the parents to have a schedule that allows the child to have the maximum physical and emotional time with both parents. This can happen if the parents share custody or by them making a good visitation schedule.
If either parent asks the court to grant a joint arrangement, the court will grant it unless the other parent can prove that a sole custody agreement is in the best interest of the child. When the parents are going to share responsibility, they are required to come up with a plan that outlines how they will divide the care and duties of raising the child. The parents are almost always given joint legal custody of the children, however this doesn’t mean that the mother and father have the exact same amount of time with them. Sole physical custody can be given to one parent in this arrangement.
Section 598 also states that any custody decision is done with the child’s best interest in mind. This means that the parents need to make a schedule that fits the needs of the child. When thinking about the child’s welfare, the law recommends that parents consider: if each parent is a capable custodial parent of the children, if the child will suffer if they don’t have enough time with both parents, the preference of the child, who has cared for the child in the past, if the parents can communicate to each other about the child’s needs, if joint custody will work for the child.
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Prop 8 Trial Re-enactment, Day 1 Chapter 4
