Divorce and your children
A divorce is hard on children and parents. That is why the parental agreement is the most important agreement for you and your children.
A divorce is a painful experience that unleashes a tidal wave of feelings. As a father or mother, you not only have to cope with your own confusion but also with your children’s sadness and their need for support.
Two crucial factors that form the foundation for a long-lasting and balanced relationship between parents and children are:
- A well worked out parental authority agreement, custody agreement and cost agreement.
- Solid agreements on maintenance money for the childre
- Agreements on good parenting with a view to the future.
Should we opt for co-parenting so that we both have authority over the children? Is alternating custody (a 50/50 custody arrangement) feasible in our situation? What is an objective and fair method for calculating costs and alimony?
The agreements reached are set out in a parenting agreement.
- The parental authority agreement
- Co-parenting or another arrangement
- The custody agreement - alternating custody or another arrangement
- Who do the children stay with during the school year and during holidays?
- Cost
- What are the costs?
- Who pays?
- How is alimony (maintenance) paid?
- Under what circumstances can the above arrangements be modified or terminated?
Remember: children suffer more from arguing parents – before, during and after the divorce – than from the divorce itself. So it is important for the parental agreement to be clear and feasible and that it include built-in flexibility so that it can be amended if circumstances change. Once this is properly settled, there is time to work on building up a new future with the children.
In our five-step plan, the Divorce Consultants help you to:
- draw up the parental agreement.
- calculate the costs pertaining to the children.
- determine the amount of maintenance (alimony).