PROPOSED LAW WILL HELP MILITARY PARENTS RETAIN CHILD CUSTODY

One of the ironies of our legal system is that it sometimes turns its back on those who need help the most. This also extends to occasionally turning a surprisingly cold shoulder toward members of the armed services who are deployed overseas. Men and women from Michigan and elsewhere who serve in the military may be surprised to find that they can lose their primary child custody rights when they are deployed into the highest service of their country.

Despite all the protections that service men and women would seem to have, if a service member is deployed and must leave a child behind, the noncustodial parent can obtain primary physical custody by filing a petition with the court. This can be done without even having the military parent present in court during the custodial proceedings. A deployed parent will almost never be able to attend the court case.

Although there are laws, for example, that protect service members’ contractual obligations when they are deployed, there is nothing similar for child custody matters. But there is a pending bill in Congress, called the Servicemember Family Protection Act, which attempts to do that. The law would prevent a civil court from considering a service member’s deployment status in determining the child’s best interest in a custody modification proceeding.

The bill, now in the Senate, provides that if a court transfers custody during the parent’s deployment, that parent would regain custodial rights when the deployment is ended. It remains to be seen how the bill would deal with joint custody and visitation rights. The child’s best interest is always the overriding issue in a child custody case. If the bill passes, the challenge for the courts will be to evaluate that question without considering the military parent’s deployment status.

A member of the military who resides in Michigan should consider entering into a negotiated agreement with the other parent that will cover what happens in the event of combat deployment. The same applies to the nonmilitary parent who shares child custody or has visitation rights. Such agreements can be entered as court orders and will detail the rights and obligations of the parties before a problem arises.

Source: UTSanDiego.com, “Law would help military members in custody battles,” Sabrina Elkins, Jere Fields & Chonell Candace Woode, Jan. 10, 2013