Divorce comes with different issues. When children are involved, it could make the situation even more complicated, especially when the adult parties cannot come to an agreement regarding their children. When it comes to child custody and extracurricular activities, you may be wondering what you can and cannot do when scheduling activities for your child.
Extracurricular Activities Against the Other Parent’s Wishes
If one party signs a child up for an extracurricular activity and it is during the other parent’s custodial time, that parent is not obligated to take the child to the activity. When one parent has custody of their child, they are free to use their time however they want. The best way to confidently sign a child up for an extracurricular activity is to make sure that it is agreed upon in a custody order.
Which Party Will Pay for the Extracurricular Activity?
If certain extracurricular activities are agreed upon in a custody order, the courts will normally rule that both parties pay for the activity based on their proportional income. However, if one parent signs a child up for an extracurricular activity without their ex-spouse’s consent, the ex-spouse is not obligated to pay for it unless they voluntarily decide to do so.
Effective Co-Parenting Tips
Co-parenting can be difficult, but it is important to keep in mind that it requires you and your ex-spouse to make decisions that are in the best interest of your children. A few ways to effectively co-parent include:
- Both parties making and confirming parenting arrangements ahead of time to avoid confusion.
- Making sure to notify the other party of changes in parenting schedules between homes. If you need to cancel time with your child, this would be the time to do that.
- Avoiding scheduling extracurricular activities during your co-parent’s parenting time without getting their consent.
- Avoiding letting your children in on co-parenting issues involving extracurricular activities. If a child knows that their parents are not in agreement about an activity, the child may not enjoy participating if they know that a parent did not agree to it.
- Making sure that you and your co-parent agree about rules, discipline, and routines when it comes to your children.
- Avoiding arguing in front of your children.
- Avoiding making your children choose sides.
Delaware County Child Custody Lawyers at Eckell Sparks Represent Clients with Child Custody Concerns
The divorce process can be even more difficult when child custody issues are involved. If you are going through the child custody process, contact a Delaware County child custody lawyer at Eckell, Sparks, Levy, Auerbach, Monte, Sloane, Matthews & Auslander, P.C. Our experienced lawyers will help you through the child custody process step-by-step. For an initial consultation, contact us online or call us at 610-565-3701. Located in Media and West Chester, Pennsylvania, we proudly serve clients throughout Delaware County, Chester County, and Montgomery County.