Child custody orders should be shared with schools

 Posted on April 26, 2018 in Child Custody

In order to have parents and school officials on the same page, it can be helpful to share important family information. If the parents are divorced, and a child custody order is in place, sharing the order with the school can help prevent confusion. Illinois families typically create custody orders during a divorce, which set the guidelines for legal and physical custody. When the information is shared with the school, the parents can work with the school to ensure that the proper procedures are followed.

When a child enters a school at the beginning of the year with an order in place, the parents may want to take the extra step to inform the school. This way, the officials will know who to contact and when in case of an emergency. Also, if a parent or another individual is prohibited from seeing the child, he or she can be prevented from taking the child if it is not authorized.

Some schools take extra steps to protect students, like having guests sign in and be on an approved list before taking a child. Sometimes there is confusion as to whether a noncustodial parent can access the child's school records, whether the noncustodial parent is allowed to visit the child at school, or pick him or her up. By working with the courts through the custody order, these matters can be settled.

Illinois families can work through the courts during a divorce to make a child custody agreement that is in the child's best interests. Once the order has been made, parents can inform other adults in the child's life about the changes and to help maintain the agreements within the order. When creating a custody agreement, many individuals choose to utilize the services of an experienced family law attorney.

Source: campussafetymagazine.com, "How Schools Should Protect Students from Child Custody Disputes", Amy Rock, April 23, 2018