Separating or divorcing parents have one of the most emotional and sensitive problems, that is, who will the children live with, and how long will they spend with each parent. To determine such issues, the court may make a Child Arrangement Order (CAO) a legal document that specifies how the child is going to live and be taken care of following the separation.
A Child Arrangement Order may state:
The role of CAO is to make sure that the welfare of the child is the primary concern of the court. All the judgments of the judge are based on the best interest of the child that will not be based on the convenience or inclinations of either parent.
CAO includes on average two different components:
This determines who the child will be staying with (or in some cases both parents). In other cases, the parents can be the same in terms of living accessible by a shared care arrangement where the child spends a lot of time with each family.
This is a state of how and when the child will get access to the parent that does not live in the home. The physical contacts may be of different types, i.e. in-person meetings, staying over, phone or video calls, or supervised visits, depending on the situation.
The children Act 1989 provides the children court with the welfare checklist which is used in determining child arrangements. Among others, some of the main considerations are:
The needs of the child physically, emotionally, and educationally.
All these enable the court to make a fair and balanced decision in which the stability and safety of the child are placed first.
Situations may also vary with time- say, when one of the parents relocates to a different location, or the education requirements of the child may change. In this instance, any of the two parents may make an application to change the current order to suit the new circumstances.
In case a parent does not abide by the order, the other parent may seek the court to enforce the order. Some of the measures that can be undertaken by the court include issuing warnings, imposing fines, enforcing community service or even making modifications to the order in order to safeguard the welfare of the child.
We know that the issue of stress and emotional arguments over children can be very stressful at First Law Solicitors. Our practiced family law solicitors can provide us with sympathetic but realistic advice as we get to an agreement that will suit your family. It can be negotiation, mediation, or court representation, but we make sure that the best interests of your child will be considered during all the decisions.
In case you are seeking a clear legal advice or need help with application or defence of a Child Arrangement Order, call us on today to receive expert help.
Copyright © 2025. First Law Solicitors. All Rights Reserved
