Child Custody Laws in New Mexico

Secure Your Visitation Rights With an Albuquerque Child Custody Lawyer

You have a lot of difficult things going on in your life right now. Going through a divorce or separation is hard enough, but adding children to the mix makes the situation even more emotionally complicated. You have questions about the child custody laws in New Mexico and how your children will be impacted by your divorce or separation. You want to provide your children stability in this difficult time, but how do you do that when the situation is so fragile? How do you know what is acceptable and what is not when it comes to sharing time with both parents?

The Albuquerque family law lawyers at Sandia Family Law can help you answer these questions and more. We will represent you as your child custody lawyer when you are fighting in (or out) of court to maintain your rights as your child’s parent.

Call Sandia Family Law today at (505) 544-5126 for an initial consultation with a child custody lawyer in Albuquerque!

Child Custody Laws in New Mexico

Enlisting the help of an Albuquerque family law attorney at Sandia Family Law can help you navigate through the legal process. Child custody arrangements are determined three different ways, including: mediation, collaborative proceedings, or through a court order.

Additionally, the court ordered process can include:

• Court Clinic Recommendations: This recommendation is made by a 3rd party by request of a judge or the parties when a dispute over timesharing arises. After interviewing the parties and investigating the circumstances, the court clinicians, who are mediators, counselors, and psychologists, will prepare a proposal for child custody based on that clinician’s findings.

• Guardian ad Litem: Because the Court Clinic process is relatively free, the wait for services can be long. An alternative to that process is a guardian ad litem (GAL), an attorney representing your children’s interests. Lengthy, in-depth interviews are conducted with the parties, the children, teachers, daycare providers and anyone else who may be able to provide vital information regarding your children’s best interests. The GAL will then recommend a timesharing plan for you and your family.

• Custody evaluation: In this process, the parties jointly hire a psychologist to conduct a similar process to that of the GAL, but which also includes psychological testing. While the judges in the second judicial district will make minor changes to timesharing, or ratify a timesharing plan that had been in place while the parties still resided together, judges here rarely make significant timesharing decisions. A custody evaluation will always be required for a relocation request.

The child custody laws in New Mexico are constantly changing, and an attorney at Sandia Family Law can help advise you on your rights as a parent. For example, did you know the entire code on paternity laws, including laws covering father’s rights, was changed in 2010? This could significantly affect your parental rights. Contact us today for more information on this or any other family law matter.

How an ABQ Child Custody Attorney Can Help You

Whether you decide that you want to proceed through child custody mediation, through a collaborative divorce, or through in-court litigation, our child custody attorney will be there to help you as we work toward an arrangement that is truly in the best interest of your child.